Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Ecclesiastes 8:1
Who [is] as the wise [man]? and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? a man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the boldness of his face shall be changed.
1. Who is as the wise man? ] The question comes in abruptly as from a teacher who calls the attention of his scholars to things that are (“significant to those who understand”) and remind us of the “He that hath ears to hear let him hear” in our Lord’s teaching (Mat 11:15; Mat 13:9; Mar 4:9). Something there was in what he is about to add, to be read between the lines. It required a man to “know the interpretation” (the noun is Chaldaean and is found, with a slight variation, as the prominent word in Dan 4:5; Dan 4:7) of the “thing” or better, “of the word. ” We find the probable explanation of this suggestive question in the fact that the writer veils a protest against despotism in the garb of the maxims of servility.
a man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine ] Literally, illuminates his face. The word paints with a wonderful vividness the almost trans-figuring effect of the “sweetness and light” of a serene wisdom, or of the joy that brightens a man’s countenance when he utters his Eureka over the solution of a long-pondered problem.
the boldness of his face shall be changed ] Literally, the strength of face, i.e. its sternness. The words have been very variously translated, (1) as in the LXX. “his shameless face shall be hated,” (2) as by Ewald “the brightness of his countenance shall be doubled.” There is no ground, however, for rejecting the Authorised Version. The “boldness of the face” is, as in the “fierce countenance” of Deu 28:50; Dan 8:23, the “impudent face” of Pro 7:13, the coarse ferocity of ignorance, and this is transformed by culture. The maxim is like that of the familiar lines of Ovid,
“Adde quod ingenuas didicisse fideliter artes,
Emollit mores nec sinit esse feros.”
“To learn in truth the nobler arts of life,
Makes manners gentle, rescues them from strife.”
Epp. ex Ponto ii. 9. 47.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
And who – Rather, and as he who knoweth. The possessor of wisdom excels other people: it imparts serenity to his countenance, and removes the expression of gloom or fierceness (see the marginal reference).
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Ecc 8:1
A mans wisdom maketh his face to shine and the boldness of his face shall be changed.
The human face
In all the works of God there is nothing more wonderful than the human countenance. The face is ordinarily the index of character. It is the throne of the emotions, the battlefield of the passions. It is the catalogue of character, the map of the mind, the geography of the soul. Whether we will or not, physiognomy decides a thousand things in commercial, and financial, and social, and religious domains. From one lid of the Bible to the other there is no science so recognized as that of physiognomy, and nothing more thoroughly taken for granted than the power of the soul to transfigure the face. The Bible speaks of the face of God, the face of Jesus Christ, the face of Esau, the face of Israel, the face of Job, the face of the old man, the shining face of Moses, the wrathful face of Pharaoh, the ashes on the face of humiliation, the resurrectionary staff on the face of the dead child, the hypocrites disfiguring their face, and in my text the Bible declares, A mans wisdom maketh his face to shine and the sourness of his face shall be sweetened. And now I am going to tell you of some of the chisels that work for the disfiguration or irradiation of the human countenance. One of the sharpest and most destructive of those chisels of the countenance is–
I. Cynicism. That sours the disposition and then sours the face. It gives a contemptuous curl to the lip. It draws down the corners of the mouth and inflates the nostril as with a mal-odour. It is the chastisement of God that when a man allows his heart to be cursed with cynicism his face becomes gloomed, and scowled, and lachrymosod, and blasted with the same midnight.
II. But let Christian cheerfulness try its chisel upon a mans countenance. Feeling that all things are for his good, and that God rules, and that the Bible being true the worlds floralization is rapidly approaching, and the day when distillery, and bomb-shell, and rifle-pit, and seventy-four pounders, and roulette-tables, and corrupt book, and satanic printing press will have quit work, the brightness that comes from such anticipation not only gives zest to his work, but shines in his eyes and glows in his cheek, and kindles a morning in his entire countenance. The grace of God comes to the heart of a man or woman and then attempts to change a forbidding and prejudicial face into attractiveness. Perhaps the face is most unpromising for the Divine Sculptor. But having changed the heart it begins to work on the countenance with celestial chisel, and into all the lineaments of the face puts a gladness and an expectation that changes it from glory to glory, and though earthly criticism may disapprove of this or that in the appearance of the face, Christ says of the newly-created countenance that which Pilate said of Him, Behold the man!
III. Here is another mighty chisel for the countenance, and you may call it revenge, or hate, or malevolence. This spirit having taken possession of the heart it encamps seven devils under the eyebrows. It puts cruelty into the compression of the lips. You can tell from the mans looks that he is pursuing some one and trying to get even with him. There are suggestions of Nero, and Robespierre, and Diocletian, and thumbscrews, and racks all up and down the features. Infernal artists with murderers daggers have been cutting away at that visage. The revengeful heart has built its perdition in the revengeful countenance. Disfiguration of diabolic passion!
IV. But here comes another chisel to shape the countenance, and it is kindness. There came a moving day, and into her soul moved the whole family of Christian graces, with all the children and grandchildren, and the command has come forth from the heavens that that womans face shall be made to correspond with her superb soul. Her entire face from ear to ear becomes the canvas on which all the best artists of heaven begin to put their finest strokes, and on the small compass of that face are put pictures of sunrise over the sea, and angels of mercy going up and down ladders all a-flash, and mountains of transfiguration and noon-day in heaven. Kindness! It is the most magnificent sculptor that over touched human countenance. It makes the face to shine while life lasts, and after death puts a summer sunset between the still lips and the smoothed hair that makes me say sometimes at obsequies, She seems too beautiful to bury.
V. But here comes another chisel, and its name is hypocrisy. Christ with one terrific stroke in his Sermon on the Mount described this character: When ye fast be not as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance; for they disfigure their faces that they may appear unto men to fast. Hypocrisy having taken possession of the soul it immediately appears in the countenance. Hypocrites are always solemn. They carry several country graveyards in their faces. They are tearful when there is nothing to cry about. A man cannot have hypocrisy in his heart without somehow showing it in his face. All intelligent people who witness it know it is nothing but a dramatization.
VII. Here comes another chisel, and that belongs to the old-fashioned religion. It first takes possession of the whole soul, washing out its sins by the blood of the Lamb and starting heaven right there and then. This is done deep down in the heart. Religion says, Now let me go up to the windows and front gate of the face and set up some signal that I have taken possession of this castle. I will celebrate the victory by an illumination that no one can mistake. I have made this man happy, and now I will make him look happy. I will draw the corners of his mouth as far up as they were drawn down. I will take the contemptuous curl away from the lip and nostril. I will make his eyes flash and his cheeks glow at every mention of Christ and heaven. I will make even the wrinkles of his face lock like furrows ploughed for the harvests of joy. I will make what we call the crows feet around his temples suggestive that the dove of peace has been alighting there. There may be signs of trouble on that face, but trouble sanctified. There may be scars of battle on that face, but they will be scars of campaigns won. (T. De Witt Talmage.)
Gospel of the shining face
(with Mat 17:2):–Note the variation of the Douay version: The wisdom of a man shineth in his countenance. We would have been glad to stand with the disciples on the mountain to see Jesus when His face shone.
I. What is the final secret of a radiant face like that of Jesus?
1. A mans wisdom maketh his face to shine. The genuine radiance of wisdom is not an outside application. Outward polish desirable, but not to be substituted for inward character.
2. There is a human wisdom in man that comes up through nature that seems to have some radiating quality. The reign of life begins with the creature fiat on his face. Ascending orders are, on the whole, increasingly erected, until man comes, the only creature with wisdom to turn his face upward. He is the being with the upturned face.
3. But the light of nature in man was not that which shone in the transfigured face of Jesus. This light does not come up through nature, but down from God. Entering man, it changes the qualities of the nature light. It is only when it streams out again that we also get transfiguration experiences. This light in us is the wisdom that makes the face shine.
II. How may we have and show this shining face?
1. Companying with Christ. The true disciples face will always reflect the Masters light.
2. Busy interest in a great aim pursued for Jesus sake. In cheerful work the face will shine.
3. Faith in the coming triumph of the kingdom.
4. The immortal hope. Upon the disciples face the light is always that of the eternal city. Dying saints in pain comfort us with shining faces when we go hoping to comfort them. Let your light shine. (Homiletic Review.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
CHAPTER VIII
A man’s wisdom makes his face shine, 1.
Kings are to be greatly respected, 2-4.
Of him who keeps the commandment; of the misery of man; of the
certainty of death, 5-8.
Of him that rules another to his own hurt, 9.
The end of the wicked, 10.
God’s longsuffering, 11, 12.
It shall be ill with wicked men, 13.
Strange events in the course of Providence, 14, 15.
God’s works cannot be found out, 16, 17.
NOTES ON CHAP. VIII
Verse 1. Who knoweth the interpretation] pesher, a pure Chaldee word, found nowhere else in the Bible but in the Chaldee parts of Daniel. “A man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine.” Every state of the heart shines through the countenance; but there is such an evidence of the contented, happy, pure, benevolent state of the soul in the face of a truly pious man, that it must be observed, and cannot be mistaken. In the Hebrew the former clause of this verse ends the preceding chapter. Who has ever been deceived in the appearance of the face that belonged to a savage heart? Those who represent, by painting or otherwise, a wise man, with a gravely sour face, striking awe and forbidding approach, have either mistaken the man, or are unacquainted with some essential principles of their art.
The boldness of his face shall be changed.] Instead of yeshunne, which signifies shall be hated, many of Kennicott’s and De Rossi’s MSS. have yeshunneh, shall be changed or doubled. Hence the verse might be read, “The wisdom of a man shall illuminate his face; and the strength of his countenance shall be doubled.” He shall speak with full confidence and conviction on a subject which he perfectly understands, and all will feel the weight of his observations.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Who is as the wise man? who is to be compared with a wise man? He is incomparably the most excellent man in the world. Or rather, who is truly wise? the particle as being here not a note of similitude, but of reality, as it is Joh 1:14, and in many other places, as hath been noted. There are very few or no truly wise men in this world. This seems best to agree with the next clause, which is not, who is as he that knoweth, but who knoweth, &c.
Who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? how few are there who understand the reasons of things, and can rightly expound the word and works of God, and instruct and satisfy himself and others in all the doubtful and difficult cases of human actions!
A mans wisdom maketh his face to shine; maketh a man illustrious and venerable, cheerful, and mild, and amiable in his carriage to others. The face is put for the mind or inward frame, because the mind discovers itself in the countenance.
The boldness of his face; the roughness or fierceness, the pride or impudence of his disposition, as this phrase is used, Deu 28:50; Pro 7:13; 21:29; Dan 8:23; shall be changed into gentleness and humility.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
1. Praise of true wisdomcontinued (Ec 7:11, c.). “Who”is to be accounted “equal to the wise man? . . . Who (like him)knoweth the interpretation” of God’s providences (for example,Ecc 7:8 Ecc 7:13;Ecc 7:14), and God’s word (forexample, see on Ec 7:29; Pr1:6)?
face to shine (Ecc 7:14;Act 6:15). A sunnycountenance, the reflection of a tranquil conscience and serenemind. Communion with God gives it (Exo 34:29;Exo 34:30).
boldnessausterity.
changedinto a benignexpression by true wisdom (religion) (Jas3:17). MAURERtranslates, “The shining (brightness) of his face isdoubled,” arguing that the Hebrew noun for”boldness” is never used in a bad sense (Pr4:18). Or as Margin, “strength” (Ecc 7:19;Isa 40:31; 2Co 3:18).But the adjective is used in a bad sense (De28:50).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Who is as the wise [man]?…. Who is as the first man, that was made upright, and was a wise man? not one of his sons. Or who is as the wise man, meaning himself? no man; he was the wisest of men; and yet he could not find out wisdom, and the reason of things, and the wickedness of folly, Ec 7:25; how therefore should any other man? what can the man do that comes after the king? Or who is like to a wise man, to he compared to him for honour and dignity? none; not those of the highest birth and blood, of the greatest wealth and riches, or in the highest places of power and authority; a wise man is above them, they being without wisdom; and especially such as are wise to salvation; these are the excellent in the earth, and the most worthy among men. Or who is a truly wise man? is there really such a person in the world, that has got to the perfection of wisdom? not one; and very few they are that can, in a true and proper sense, be called wise men. The Targum is,
“who is a wise man, that can stand against the wisdom of the Lord?”
and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? or “a word” q? the word of God, which is not of private interpretation? none know it rightly, but such who have the Spirit of God, the enditer of the word: Christ is the interpreter, one among a thousand; and, next to him are those who have his mind, and rightly divide the word of truth. The Targum is,
“and to know the interpretation of the words in the prophets:”
this may be understood of the solution of any difficulties in things natural or civil; and of the interpretation of any of the works of God, either in nature or providence, as well as of his word; and he is a wise man, that not only has wisdom in himself, but is able to teach others, and make them wise; can solve doubts, remove difficulties, interpret nature, the works and word of God. Aben Ezra repeats the note of similitude from the former clause, and so it may be rendered, “Who is as he that knows the interpretation of a thing”, or “word?” such an one as Solomon was, Pr 1:6;
a man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine: as Moses, when he came down from the mount, full fraught with the knowledge of the will of God,
Ex 34:29; and as Stephen, whose wisdom and spirit, by which he spoke, were irresistible, Ac 6:10; wisdom, which discovers itself in a man’s words and actions, gives comeliness to his person, makes him look amiable and lovely in the eyes of others: or, it “enlightens his face” r; by it he is able to see the difference between truth and falsehood, and what is to be done and not done; what way he should walk in, and what he should shun and avoid;
and the boldness of his face shall be changed; the ferocity and austerity of his countenance, the impudence and inhumanity that appeared in him before, through his wisdom and knowledge, are changed into meekness, gentleness, and humanity; of an impudent, fierce, and badly behaved man, he becomes meek, modest, affable, and humane; this effect natural wisdom and knowledge has on men s; and much more spiritual and evangelical wisdom, which comes from above, and is first pure, then peaceable and gentle, Jas 3:17. Some read it, “the strength of his face shall be doubled”, or “renewed” t; he shall be changed into the same image, from glory to glory; his spiritual strength shall be renewed, and his light and knowledge increase yet more and more, 2Co 3:18. But Gussetius u renders it, his “boldness”, or impudence, “shall be hated”.
q “verbi”, V. L. Pagninus, Montanus. r “illustrati”, Vatablus, Junius Tremellius, Piscator, Mercerus “illuminat”, Cocceius, Gejerus, Rambachius, so Broughton. s “Adde quod ingenuas didicisse fideliter artes, emollit mores, nec sinit esse feros”, Ovid. de Ponto, l. 2. Eleg. 9. t “duplicatur”, Junius Tremellius, Varenius “instauratur”, Cocceius, Gejerus. u Ebr. Comment. p. 595. so the Septuagint, Syriac, and Arabic versions.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
“Who is like the wise? and who understandeth the interpretation of things? The wisdom of a man maketh his face bright, and the rudeness of his face is changed.” Unlike this saying: “Who is like the wise?” are the formulas , Hos 14:9, Jer 11:11, Psa 107:43, which are compared by Hitzig and others. “Who is like the wise?” means: Who is equal to him? and this question, after the scheme , Exo 15:11, presents him as one who has not his like among men. Instead of the word might be used, after , Ecc 2:16, etc. The syncope is, as at Eze 40:25, omitted, which frequently occurs, particularly in the more modern books, Eze 47:22; 2Ch 10:7; 2Ch 25:10; 2Ch 29:27; Neh 9:19; Neh 12:38. The regular giving of Dagesh to after , with Jethib, not Mahpach, is as at Ecc 8:7 after ; Jethib is a disjunctive. The second question is not , but , and thus does not mean: who is like the man of understanding, but: who understands, viz., as the wise man does; thus it characterizes the incomparably excellent as such. Many interpreters (Oetinger, Ewald, Hitz., Heiligst., Burg., Elst., Zckl.) persuade themselves that is meant of the understanding of the proverb, 8 b. The absence of the art., says Hitzig, does not mislead us: of a proverb, viz., the following; but in this manner determinate ideas may be made from all indeterminate ones. Rightly, Gesenius: explicationem ullius rei ; better, as at Ecc 7:8: cujusvis rei . Ginsburg compares , 1Sa 16:18, which, however, does not mean him who has the knowledge of things, but who is well acquainted with words. It is true that here also the chief idea first leads to the meaning verbum (according to which the lxx, Jer., the Targ., and Syr. translate; the Venet.: ); but since the unfolding or explaining ( pesher ) refers to the actual contents of the thing spoken, verbi and rei coincide. The wise man knows how to explain difficult things, to unfold mysterious things; in short, he understands how to go to the foundation of things.
What now follows, Ecc 8:1, might be introduced by the confirming , but after the manner of synonymous parallelism it places itself in the same rank with 1 a, since, that the wise man stands so high, and no one like him looks through the centre of things, is repeated in another form: “Wisdom maketh his face bright” is thus to be understood after Psa 119:130 and Psa 19:9, wisdom draws the veil from his countenance, and makes it clear; for wisdom is related to folly as light is to darkness, Ecc 2:13. The contrast, … (“and the rudeness of his face is changed”), shows, however, that not merely the brightening of the countenance, but in general that intellectual and ethical transfiguration of the countenance is meant, in which at once, even though it should not in itself be beautiful, we discover the educated man rising above the common rank. To translate, with Ewald: and the brightness of his countenance is doubled, is untenable; even supposing that can mean, like the Arab. yuthattay , duplicatur , still , in the meaning of brightness, is in itself, and especially with , impossible, along with which it is, without doubt, to be understood after az panim , Deu 28:50; Dan 8:23, and he’ez panim , Pro 7:13, or bephanim , Pro 21:29, so that thus has the same meaning as the post-bibl. , stiffness, hardness, rudeness of countenance = boldness, want of bashfulness, regardlessness, e.g., Shabbath 30 b, where we find a prayer in these words: O keep me this day from and from (that I may not incur the former or the latter). The Talm. Taanith 7 b, thus explaining, says: “Every man to whom belongs, him one may hate, as the scripture says, … (do not read ).” The lxx translates will be hated, and thus also the Syr.; both have thus read as the Talm. has done, which, however, bears witness in favour of as the traditional reading. It is not at all necessary, with Hitzig, after Zirkel, to read y|shane’: but boldness disfigureth his countenance; in itself alone, in the meaning of boldness, would, it is true, along with as the obj. of the verb, be tenable; but the change is unnecessary, the passive affords a perfectly intelligible meaning: the boldness, or rudeness, of his visage is changed, viz., by wisdom (Bttch., Ginsb., Zckl.). The verb ( , Lam 4:1) means, Mal 3:6, merely “to change, to become different;” the Pih. , Jer 52:33, , 2Ki 25:29, denotes in these two passages a change in melius , and the proverb of the Greek, Sir. 13:24, –
,
is preserved to us in its original form thus:
so that thus , in the sense of being changed as to the sternness of the expression of the countenance, is as good as established. What Ovid says of science: emollit mores nec sinit esse feros , thus tolerably falls in with what is here said of wisdom: Wisdom gives bright eyes to a man, a gentle countenance, a noble expression; it refines and dignifies his external appearance and his demeanour; the hitherto rude external, and the regardless, selfish, and bold deportment, are changed into their contraries. If, now, Ecc 8:1 is not to be regarded as an independent proverb, it will bear somewhat the relation of a prologue to what follows. Luther and others regard Ecc 8:1 as of the nature of an epilogue to what goes before; parallels, such as Hos 14:9, make that appear probable; but it cannot be yielded, because the words are not , but . But that which follows easily subordinates itself to Ecc 8:1, in as far as fidelity to duty and thoughtfulness amid critical social relations are proofs of that wisdom which sets a man free from impetuous rudeness, and fits him intelligently and with a clear mind to accommodate himself to the time.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
| The Excellence of Wisdom; The Duty of Subjects. | |
1 Who is as the wise man? and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? a man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the boldness of his face shall be changed. 2 I counsel thee to keep the king’s commandment, and that in regard of the oath of God. 3 Be not hasty to go out of his sight: stand not in an evil thing; for he doeth whatsoever pleaseth him. 4 Where the word of a king is, there is power: and who may say unto him, What doest thou? 5 Whoso keepeth the commandment shall feel no evil thing: and a wise man’s heart discerneth both time and judgment.
Here is, I. An encomium of wisdom (v. 1), that is, of true piety, guided in all its exercises by prudence and discretion. The wise man is the good man, that knows God and glorifies him, knows himself and does well for himself; his wisdom is a great happiness to him, for, 1. It advances him above his neighbours, and makes him more excellent than they: Who is as the wise man? Note, Heavenly wisdom will make a man an incomparable man. No man without grace, though he be learned, or noble, or rich, is to be compared with a man that has true grace and is therefore accepted of God. 2. It makes him useful among his neighbours and very serviceable to them: Who but the wise man knows the interpretation of a thing, that is, understands the times and the events of them, and their critical junctures, so as to direct what Israel ought to do, 1 Chron. xii. 32. 3. It beautifies a man in the eyes of his friends: It makes his face to shine, as Moses’s did when he came down from the mount; it puts honour upon a man and a lustre on his whole conversation, makes him to be regarded and taken notice of, and gains him respect (as Job xxix. 7, c.) it makes him lovely and amiable, and the darling and blessing of his country. The strength of his face, the sourness and severity of his countenance (so some understand the last clause), shall be changed by it into that which is sweet and obliging. Even those whose natural temper is rough and morose by wisdom are strangely altered; they become mild and gentle, and learn to look pleasant. 4. It emboldens a man against his adversaries, their attempts and their scorn: The boldness of his face shall be doubled by wisdom; it will add very much to his courage in maintaining his integrity when he not only has an honest cause to plead, but by his wisdom knows how to manage it and where to find the interpretation of a thing. He shall not be ashamed, but shall speak with his enemy in the gate.
II. A particular instance of wisdom pressed upon us, and that is subjection to authority, and a dutiful and peaceable perseverance in our allegiance to the government which Providence has set over us. Observe,
1. How the duty of subjects is here described. (1.) We must be observant of the laws. In all those things wherein the civil power is to interpose, whether legislative or judicial, we ought to submit to its order and constitutions: I counsel thee; it may as well be supplied, I charge thee, not only as a prince but as a preacher: he might do both; “I recommend it to thee as a piece of wisdom; I say, whatever those say that are given to change, keep the king’s commandment; wherever the sovereign power is lodged, be subject to it. Observe the mouth of a king” (so the phrase is); “say as he says; do as he bids thee; let his word be a law, or rather let the law be his word.” Some understand the following clause as a limitation of this obedience: “Keep the king’s commandment, yet so as to have a regard to the oath of God, that is, so as to keep a good conscience and not to violate thy obligations to God, which are prior and superior to thy obligations to the king. Render to Csar the things that are Csar’s, but so as to reserve pure and entire to God the things that are his.” (2.) We must not be forward to find fault with the public administration, or quarrel with every thing that is not just according to our mind, nor quit our post of service under the government, and throw it up, upon every discontent (v. 3): “Be not hasty to go out of his sight, when he is displeased at thee (ch. x. 4), or when thou art displeased at him; fly not off in a passion, nor entertain such jealousies of him as will tempt thee to renounce the court or forsake the kingdom.” Solomon’s subjects, as soon as his head was laid low, went directly contrary to this rule, when upon the rough answer which Rehoboam gave them, they were hasty to go out of his sight, would not take time for second thoughts nor admit proposals of accommodation, but cried, To your tents, O Israel! “There may perhaps be a just cause to go out of his sight; but be not hasty to do it; act with great deliberation.” (3.) We must not persist in a fault when it is shown us: “Stand not in an evil thing; in any offence thou hast given to thy prince humble thyself, and do not justify thyself, for that will make the offence much more offensive. In any ill design thou hast, upon some discontent, conceived against thy prince, do not proceed in it; but if thou hast done foolishly in lifting up thyself, or hast thought evil, lay thy hand upon thy mouth,” Prov. xxx. 32. Note, Though we may by surprise be drawn into an evil thing, yet we must not stand in it, but recede from it as soon as it appears to us to be evil. (4.) We must prudently accommodate ourselves to our opportunities, both for our own relief, if we think ourselves wronged, and for the redress of public grievances: A wise man’s heart discerns both time and judgment (v. 5); it is the wisdom of subjects, in applying themselves to their princes, to enquire and consider both at what season and in what manner they may do it best and most effectually, to pacify his anger, obtain his favour, or obtain the revocation of any grievous measure prescribed. Esther, in dealing with Ahasuerus, took a deal of pains to discern both time and judgment, and she sped accordingly. This may be taken as a general rule of wisdom, that every thing should be well timed; and our enterprises are then likely to succeed, when we embrace the exact opportunity for them.
2. What arguments are here used to engage us to be subject to the higher powers; they are much the same with those which St. Paul uses, Rom. xiii. 1, c. (1.) We must needs be subject, for conscience-sake, and that is the most powerful principle of subjection. We must be subject because of the oath of God, the oath of allegiance which we have taken to be faithful to the government, the covenant between the king and the people, 2 Chron. xxiii. 16. David made a covenant, or contract, with the elders of Israel, though he was king by divine designation, 1 Chron. xi. 3. “Keep the king’s commandments, for he has sworn to rule thee in the fear of God, and thou hast sworn, in that fear, to be faithful to him.” It is called the oath of God because he is a witness to it and will avenge the violation of it. (2.) For wrath’s sake, because of the sword which the prince bears and the power he is entrusted with, which make him formidable: He does whatsoever pleases him he has a great authority and a great ability to support that authority (v. 4): Where the word of a king is, giving orders to seize a man, there is power; there are many that will execute his orders, which makes the wrath of a king, or supreme government, like the roaring of a lion and like messengers of death. Who may say unto him, What doest thou? He that contradicts him does it at his peril. Kings will not bear to have their orders disputed, but expect they should be obeyed. In short, it is dangerous contending with sovereignty, and what many have repented. A subject is an unequal match for a prince. He may command me who has legions at command. (3.) For the sake of our own comfort: Whoso keeps the commandment, and lives a quiet and peaceable life, shall feel no evil thing, to which that of the apostle answers (Rom. xiii. 3), Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power of the king? Do that which is good, as becomes a dutiful and loyal subject, and thou shalt ordinarily have praise of the same. He that does no ill shall feel no ill and needs fear none.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
ECCLESIASTES
CHAPTER 8
WHO IS WISE?
Verse 1 suggests that he is wise who understands what should be done to meet the problems that confront him; and that such wisdom so strengthens the possessor that his face will shine or reflect his confidence, Psa 4:8-8; Deu 28:50; Act 6:15.
RESPECT FOR AUTHORITY
Verse 2 directs obedience to the king or lawful authority, emphasizing that such is commanded by God, 1Ch 29:23-24; Rom 13:1-5.
Verses 3-4 advise against hasty departure from the presence of the king, or other actions that would indicate disloyalty or intent to disobey.
Verse 4 emphasizes that the king had power to compel obedience. Subjects should therefore respond with forbearance and submissiveness, 1Sa 25:23-24; Pro 25:15; Ecc 10:4; Rom 13:1-3.
Verse 5 affirms that he who is obedient to the king will not take part in evil rebellion against him; and if he is wise, he will know whether the king’s commandment should be corrected; also be alert to note when the time is right to seek correction, 1Sa 19:4-6; 2Sa 12:1-14; Ezr 7:2-4. ,
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
THE MYSTERY OF DIVINE PROVIDENCE
Ecc 8:1-17.
THE Book of Ecclesiastes, to all too many, is practically a closed Book. This is due, in considerable part, to the fact that its expressions are archaic. Since Solomons time we have so changed, in the use of words, that one does not immediately sense the old-time employment of the same. And yet, a little study will reveal the certainty that while language changes, men remain the same, and the experiences of life are immutable.
This eighth chapter deals with an age-long subjectThe mystery of Divine Providences. From time immemorial men have admitted the mystery and sought in vain to solve the same. But by searching they have never found out God. We know Him only as He is pleased to reveal Himself; we have the light only in proportion as He sends the same upon our path, and our wisdom is only valuable to the extent that it is superhuman and comes down from above.
This chapter describes for us The Acceptable Man, discusses The Uncertainty of Life, and affirms The Unfathomable God.
THE ACCEPTABLE MAN
A mans character is in his face.
A mans wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the boldness of his face shall be changed (Ecc 8:1).
The word boldness is rather an unfortunate translation. The Hebrew is the strength of his face shall be changed; and that conveys the exact idea. On the first assertion, A mans wisdom maketh his face to shine sound students are in practical agreement. We read intelligence or folly; we read strength or weakness; we read holiness or debauch, in the faces of men; and the man who is truly wise not only looks at us from a shining face, but from a face of strength as well. In many cases the very nature and character of the strength is written into the features. Who ever looked upon the likeness of Abraham Lincoln without feeling confident that history had correctly reported him? The eye kindled with the kindliness for which he was famed; the face told the story of the rugged character that lay back of it, and yet shone through it as glints of the diamond shine out from the rough stone that has a diamond heart. Who ever studied carefully the features of Woodrow Wilson and questioned, for one moment, either his intelligence or his dominating will; or the face of Roosevelt and doubted his daring.
Within the past year it was my privilege to journey one day into the White Mountains to that particular point from which the Great Stone Face is best beheld. You will remember that Hawthorne long since immortalized this marvel of the New Hampshire mountains. He calls this Great Stone Face a work of Nature in her mood of majestic playfulness, and he weaves around it his marvelous story of Ernest, the little lad who grew up in the valley below, and whose infant eyes rested upon this marvel of the mountains and whose mother told him the tradition that had long lived with the villagers of the vicinity, to the effect that some day a child should be born in that region who would become the greatest and noblest personage of his time, and whose countenance would bear an exact resemblance to the Great Stone Face.
The little boy received the story with enthusiasm, clapping his hands and saying, I do hope that I shall live to see him! Day after day he studied this mountain vision, and time after time he scrutinized the features of distinguished visitors who came, for points of resemblance, only to be disappointed again and yet again, so that his mother had to encourage him by saying, He will come; fear not, Ernest; the man will come.
Time moved on! More than one supposed resemblance was discovered, but further study disappointed the seekers. Finally, when the neighbor inhabitants had gathered for their evening hour, and Ernest, now in the fullness of age, his hair whitened, his countenance strong but softened by the touch of time, was the speaker. His friend, the poet, listening to his marvelous words, had at the same time looked at the Great Stone Face, with hoary mists around it, like the white hairs around the face of Ernest, when suddenly he saw, and with a shout cried, Behold! Behold! Ernest is himself the likeness of the Great Stone Face. And Hawthorne said, All the people looked and saw that what the poet had said was true; the prophecy was fulfilled.
Evidently Hawthorne meant to say, with the lifelong study of the Great Stone Face, Ernest had brought his own face into conformity with the mountain vision upon which he had looked a thousand times and always with admiration and hope.
Do we not this morning recall that remarkable passage in the New Testament in which a kindred experience is propounded? Those who have read it will not soon forget Henry Drummonds interpretation of 2Co 3:18
But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
As the face of Ernest was affected by the fact that it was often lifted in admiration to the marvelous countenance of the mountain, so the faces of men are profoundly affected by the visions of life, the sights they behold, particularly the subjects of their admiration. It is no wonder that the true Christian countenance is attractive. He looks into the face of Christ!
There is a significant phrase in Act 4:13. Peter and John having been the instruments of healing in the miracle at the gate Beautiful, and a great uproar having been created by it, the Apostles had been imprisoned for a twenty-four hour period, and the rulers and elders and Scribes had sat in judgment, and asked,
By what power, or by what name, have ye done this?
Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said unto them, Ye rulers of the people, and elders of Israel,
If we this day be examined of the good deed done to the impotent man, by what means he is made whole;
Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by Him doth this man stand here before you whole.
This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the Corner.
Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under Heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.
The Kings companionship affects alike countenance, conduct and character.
The Kings commandment is the basis of conduct.
I counsel thee to keep the kings commandment, and that in regard of the oath of God.
Be not hasty to go out of his sight: stand not in an evil thing; for he doeth whatsoever pleaseth him (Ecc 8:3).
There were some accusations made against Jesus that were entirely justified. In the twenty-third chapter of Lukes Gospel, and in the second verse, we read this charge: We found this Fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, saying that He Himself is Christ a King. He was and He is, King of kings, and Lord of lords (1Ti 6:15)!
The time has come when many men are asserting what Christ presented in a parable, We will not have this man to reign over us. In fact, the reports that reach us from China, Russia, and other countries, and the growth of atheism in our own land, all tend to indicate the literal fulfilment of Psa 2:2-3,
The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against His Anointed, saying,
Let us break Their bands asunder, and cast away Their cords from us.
But this spirit of rebellion only suffices to make the more clear, and even to emphasize, the great essential of obedience to the Kings command, and the sin of attempting to escape from His sight that one might stand in an evil thing. The Kings command is life, and the Kings command is Light. We are His friends, if we do whatsoever He has commanded us. To obey is better than sacrifice.
The Kings word is the end of controversy.
Where the word of a king is, there is power: and who may say unto him, What doest thou?
Whoso keepeth the commandment shall feel no evil thing: and a wise mans heart discerneth both time and judgment.
The fundamentalist world holds today, as the faithful adherents of Christianity have always held, that the Kings command is an end of controversy. When He speaks the subject to which He has addressed Himself is settled once and for ever. Men may debate as much as they like the authorship of the Pentateuch, but when the King says that Moses wrote it (Joh 1:17; Joh 3:14; Joh 6:32), for the believer, that is an end of controversy. They may dispute the time of Daniels history and call into question the recorded experiences of that Old Testament worthy, but when Christ has confirmed it (Mat 24:15). further debate is useless. Men may quibble about the experience of Lots wife, but when Christ asserts its truthfulness and employs it in illustration (Luk 17:32) further discussion of that subject is out of order. Men may continue to scoff Jonahs experience in the fishs belly; but for the believer, the words of Jesus are not only an end of controversy but to infidelity upon the subject. Jesus said, As Jonah was three days and three nights in the whales belly; so shall the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth (Mat 12:40).
It is not likely that the God of all wisdom would employ a falsification of history to confirm a matter of prophecy. Where the word of a king is, there is power. The mooted questions of life have never been settled by another; but the Kings word is final.
We come, however, upon a great many subjects upon which we have no revelation that descends to minutiae. That is why we speak of the mysteries of providence.
One of these relates itself to
THE UNCERTAINTY OF LIFE
The day of judgment is certain, but the time is not determined.
Because to every purpose there is time and judgment, therefore the misery of man is great upon him.
For he knoweth not that which shall be: for who can tell him when it shall be? (Ecc 8:6-7).
There are those who seem to think that this is all wrong; that we ought not to live in uncertainty; that we should know what tomorrow will bring forth. Such knowledge, instead of contributing to human happiness, would utterly destroy it. The mother who holds the new-born babe in her arms has no promise of long life for the same, but that hope, that expectation, is an hourly contribution to her joy. The bride who walks to the altar with the husband of her choice has no assurance that he will be found at her side for all the long journey through, but her hope to that effect is the ground of her happiness. The business man whose affairs are prosperous, and even he who suffers reverses, clings to the expectation that prosperity will yet come, and his hope for ever furnishes the inspiration for the days endeavor.
A recent Wall Street publication tells the story of a man who had lost a fortune in the slump in stocks. His millions had been reduced to less than a hundred thousand. In his despair, sleep came but was troubled with dreams. In the dream a fairy came and said, Ask what you will and I will give it to you. Whereupon the broker said, Let me see the daily paper, published one year from today. Instantly the fairy put the paper into his hand. He turned to the daily finance report and shouted, Thank God, I am worth thirty millions! But as he moved to lay the paper aside, he noticed the obituary column and as his eye ran that down, he saw the record, and exclaimed, Great God; I died two days ago. What would the prospect of $30,000,000 be worth to a man if he knew that two days before the report was to be published, his obituary would be written?
It is better that we should not know that which shall be; it is better that we should not know when it shall be. It is better that we should have no power over the spirit to retain the spirit, no power to determine the day of death. It is better to face the fact there is no discharge in that war, and live as Ward Beecher once suggested, in such a way that whether we live or die we should yet be the Lords. Paul could laugh at death and rejoice in life. If life continued the grace of God would be his sufficiency; if death came, it would only effect his translation. That is why he could live in a strait betwixt the two, life or death.
The exercise of power is not always with profit.
This have I seen, and applied my heart unto every work that is done under the sun: there is a time wherein one man ruleth over another to his own hurt.
Now here is a suggestion for thoughtful men. The most of us want to be rulers. But rulership involves responsibility, and it may be exercised to ones own cost. In fact, it often is. The white race of the South could not see it, but it was none the less true on that accountAbraham Lincoln was the best friend they had in all the world; for Abraham Lincoln saw the truth of this text, namely, that the white man ruled the black man to the white mans own hurt. History has illustrated that fact. The South would never have marked the progress it has made in the last sixty years had slavery continued. The indolence of the whites, superinduced by slavery itself, and the slothfulness of the black, produced by the same system of servitude, affected deleteriously both races and despoiled the very land on which they lived. Lincolns sympathies were not with the black man only; they were with the white people as well. He saw that the white man ruled to his own hurt as surely as he ruled to the hurt of his slave.
Take the present situation in Russia and the rulership of the Soviets, the whole world is filled with righteous indignation over such oppression, with rising anger over such enslavement, imprisonments and unlimited martyrdom. But, in the end, the rulers will need the worlds compassion more than the men ruled, for in the end judgment will fall heaviest upon those who hurt others. Vengeance is not dead; and if judgment sleeps, it will yet waken. The day of the great assize is in the future. God will have the final word.
Dr. Leon Tucker tells how he was stopping in a St. Louis hotel. The day was hot; the door of his room was open into the hall, and the colored porter passing down the same, said to the maid, Im goin to leave you all tonight!
What, you goin to quit workin here?
Im goin to quit tonight.
Why you goin to work here no mo? asked the maid.
Cause I is. What do you think that housekeeper said to me today?
I dont know. What did she ask you to do? She asked me to git down on my knees and scrub, and you know these aint the days when nobody gits down on their knees for nobody.
I should say they aint, replied the maid.
This is the social situation in a nutshell, as it exists today. There is no submission, no subordination, no subjection! There is defiance everywhere. Lawlessness and bolshevism cover the earth.
This is, in fact, a consequence of the very truth to which Solomon here refers, namely, that oppressors have produced a rebellion. Many have ruled over others to their own hurt, and to the threatened ruin of society itself, and the revolt has swung to the opposite extreme of rejecting all authority.
Solomon proceeds however to another point of great importance:
The postponement of justice is not its abandonment.
Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.
Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before Him:
But it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall He prolong his days, which are as a shadow; because he feareth not before God.
There is a vanity which is done upon the earth; that there be just men, unto whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked; again, there be wicked men, to whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous: I said that this also is vanity.
Then I commended mirth, because a man hath no better thing under the sun, than to eat, and to drink, and to be merry: for that shall abide with him of his labour the days of his life, which God giveth him under the sun (Ecc 8:11-15).
This has always been the tendency of man. The exercise of Gods grace toward him too often results in the opinion that judgment will never come.
Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.
Solomon would have us see the converse truth, namely, Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that * * it shall not be well with the wicked as them that fear God.
The judgment will fall. And though, even for a time, it looks as if the righteous were suffering and the wicked were being prospered, the appearance is only a passing show. In the end the righteous will meet with Divine approval and the wicked with certain judgment.
There is a wonderful illustration of this in William Beckfords, The Caliph Vathek. Readers of that little book will remember the description that Beckford gives of Soliman Ben Daoud. In fact, he puts the words into Solimans lips: In my life-time I filled a magnificent throne, having on my right hand twelve thousand seats of gold, where the patriarchs and the prophets heard my doctrines; on my left the sages and doctors, upon as many thrones of silver, were present at all my decisions. Whilst I thus administered justice to innumerable multitudes, the birds of the air librating over me served as a canopy from the rays of the sun; my people flourished, and my palace rose to the clouds; I erected a temple to the Most High, which was the wonder of the universe; but I basely suffered myself to be seduced by the love of women, and a curiosity that could not be restrained by sublunary things; I listened to the counsels of Aherman and the daughter of Pharaoh, and adored fire and the hosts of heaven; I forsook the holy city, and commanded the Genii to rear the stupendous palace of Istakar, and the terrace of the watch-towers, each of which was consecrated to a star; there for a while I enjoyed myself in the zenith of glory and pleasure; not only men, but supernatural existences were subject also to my will. I began to think, as these unhappy monarchs around had already thought, that the vengeance of Heaven was asleep; when at once the thunder burst my structures asunder and precipitated me hither.
Unquestionably Beckford had in mind not only the human experiences that illustrate it, but the very language of Scripture itself that sets forth the fact that it will not be well with the wicked neither shall his days be prolonged, But the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed (Isa 65:20).
There is such a thing, Paul tells us, as a hard and impenitent heart,
But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God;
Who will render to every man according to his deeds (Rom 2:5-6).
The chapter concludes with a study of
THE UNFATHOMABLE GOD
Man by searching shall not find Him out!
When I applied mine heart to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done upon the earth: (for also there is that neither day nor night seeth sleep with his eyes:) (Ecc 8:16).
That is rather an accurate description of the present condition in student life. There are men, working! in the realm of science, who scarcely sleep day or night. They are so anxious to understand what has happened and to interpret all that has been done in the earth. But though sleep is taken from their eyes their search is in vain.
Canst thou by searching find out God? canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection?
It is as high as heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than hell; what canst thou know? (Job 11:7-8).
You can study the earth beneath; you can study the waters under the earth; you can study the heavens above the earth, and while each of them will bear testimony, in turn, to Gods existence, they will not give a perfect revelation of either Gods conduct or His character. The earth is the Lords, and the fullness thereof. But the Owner is not visible in the midst of His possessions; and His rulership is not with ostentation.
He causeth the vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth; He maketh lightnings for the rain; He bringeth the wind out of His treasuries (Psa 135:7). But no man beholdeth Him as He goes about this business. He maketh the clouds His chariot, but no one beholds Him as He rides therein. He waiketh upon the wings of the wind (Psa 104:3), but He leaves no tracks that are visible. He treadeth upon the waves of the sea (Job 9:8), but He leaves no foot prints behind. That is why Isaiah (Isa 40:28) wrote of Him, Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of His understanding.
God moves in a mysterious way,
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.
Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence,
He hides a smiling face.
Blind unbelief is sure to err,
And scan His work in vain;
God is His own interpreter,
And He will make it plain.
(Cowper.)
His works also are past human comprehension.
A man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because though a man labour to seek it out, yet he shall not find it (Ecc 8:17).
The reason for this is clear. The finite mind cannot comprehend the infinite. Modernism boasts the marvelous discoveries of the twentieth century and it tells us now that we know so much about the universe we demand a new conception of God, and need a new book as our Bible. But how much do we know? Are not our discoveries the discoveries of our own ignorance? A recent great volume, emanating from a leading University, presents a sort of university course in twelve or fifteen lessons, on subjects of modern study. In it two of the leading astronomers of the world appear as writers; and while they tell us of the marvelous discoveries made by modern astronomers, they confess that the biggest one of all is that of their own ignorance. They do not know how extensive the universe is; they cannot tell whether it is finite or infinite; and what they do know only emphasizes what our text says, that a man cannot find out about Gods world and though he labor to seek it out, he shall not find it. All of which practically evidences an infinite creation and strongly argues an infinite Creator.
Drs. Charles M. A. Stine and Milton H. Stine, both of them Doctors of Philosophy, one of them a Doctor of Science additional, and the other a Doctor of Divinity, unite in putting out a book, Man in the Making, on page twenty-seven of which they sanely say,
The evidence of nature for the existence of an omniscient Creator is to the minds of many scientists quite overwhelming. We have so much to gain in our conception of Deity and our appreciation of the grandeur and magnificencethe superlative wonderof Deity as exemplified by His handiwork in the material universe that it seems to us the most deplorable of mistakes for many of the uninformed or prejudiced to assume a conflict between the evanescent theories of todays science and the eternal verities of Gods Word.
Modern science has looked so much farther out into the infinite distances of the shining universes of the midnight heavens and so much deeper down into the infinitesimals of the atom and its marvelous balance of ceaselessly moving electrons in their mathematically ordered orbits, than it was possible for the science of a generation ago to do, that we, of this generation, have new cause to marvel at the majestic conceptions of Omniscience when the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. It has taxed the greatest intellects of our race to conceive the theories and formulate the hypotheses which have constituted the frail and evanescent bridge upon which man ventures forth, a step at a time, in his exploration of the transcendent wonders of creations orderly processes. And these theories, these hypotheses, have often been revised or abandoned by their most ardent adherents, as new facts have been added and new light thrown upon the problems.
The wisdom of the wise is only weakness.
Though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not be able to find if.
It was on that account that Christ came to the world. He came to reveal God more fully; He came to manifest the Divine likeness; He came to make God known to man, as he could not know Him apart from His existence in the flesh. He came to bring the finite into contact with the infinite; and so combined the two in His own person. He came to reveal the Divine heart, to manifest the Divine affection, and to show men the depth of Divine love by the sacrifice of Himself. He came to speak the language within our comprehension and, if possible, rouse in us both the sense of His affection and the sense of our possible relationship to Him as God.
The late F. B. Meyer, told how in the 1862 Exhibition there was an exquisite statue of a girl around which the crowd always stood, wondering as to the meaning of the marvel. Her attitude was wistful; her hand was to her ear, and her whole face was lifted up with wonder, in an evident effort to comprehend and to understand some glorious thing. The story associated with the statue was that in the long wars between the Indians and white settlers of America, a white girl had been stolen from her parents while yet a babe and carried into the wigwams and kept there until her young womanhood. The search of the frantic parents was in vain, except that there floated about an indefinite report that she was with some distant tribe. At last the mother started across country. She waded swamps. She fought her way through forests. She endured heat and cold. But finally she came upon her own in an Indian village at the door of the tepee. She spoke to her, but the girl knew not her language. She tried in every way to communicate with her, but seemed incapable of making herself understood. Finally she made as if holding a child in her arms, and looking down into an imaginary face, she crooned over again the lullaby with which she had rocked this babe to sleep many a time. The child began to listen wistfully and then there sprang into her features the light of understanding and the rush of old memories, and she leaped up, and flung her arms about the womans neck and in the Indian tongue, cried, Mother!
Then Dr. Meyer said, I can but believe that something like this has happened all through the ages. That God has called to His lost children again and again; but in their world environment they do not understand, and in Christ He came to them, and He croons over them that He may excite in them the memory of the day when they knew and acknowledged Him, and bring them to be, not only His children by creation, but His glad sons and daughters by volition.
Fuente: The Bible of the Expositor and the Evangelist by Riley
CRITICAL NOTES.
Ecc. 8:1. The boldness of his face shall be changed.] Folly, in the form of selfishness, imparts a fierce aspect to the features; but wisdom graces them with a superior refinement.
Ecc. 8:2. The Kings Commandment.] The Preacher falls back upon his authority as a king, striving to realise what is the Divine idea of the ruler of men. And that in regard of the oath of God.] An appeal to God as witness to that promise of obedience which every subject virtually makes to the kingthe obligation of obedience strengthened by the sanctions of religion.
Ecc. 8:3. Be not hasty to go out of His sight.] A becoming demeanour must be observed in the presence of the King. If he is not favourable to our petition, we must not show our vexation and disappointment by retiring from his presence with indecent haste. Stand not in an evil thing.] Do not excite His anger by the appearance of stubbornness, as if he could be forced into compliance by our stern attitude and bold persistency.
Ecc. 8:5. The Commandment.] The word of a king. (Ecc. 8:4.) The expressed will of an earthly authority as representing the Divine. Shall feel no evil thing.] Shall have the protection of the laws. A wise mans heart discerneth both time and judgment.] The wise man will modify the common obligation to obedience, by reason and conscience. It may be his duty to resist.
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.Ecc. 8:1-5
THE LIFE OF THE RIGHTEOUS MAN IN THE STATE
Ecc. 8:1. He Recognises Duties towards Constituted Authority. The wise man is he who has true spiritual knowledge, and who makes that knowledge the guide of his life. Such will endeavour to discharge all the duties arising from the several relations in which they stand to God and man. All are members of civil society, and therefore subjects under some form of human government. Certain duties are owing to those whom Providence has set over us in the State.
1. The duty of loyal obedience. (Ecc. 8:2.) If it is the will of God that men should exist in civil society, it must also be His will that there should be rulers, for these are necessary to the continuance and perfection of civil society. The actual rulers of mankind are in their places by that Providence which works in history. Properly constituted government affords that protection, and gives that opportunity, by which all the members of the State are able to fulfil their several duties. Our Lord and His Apostles taught that obedience must be rendered to rulers. Their memorable words on this subject must have acted as a powerful check, in the case of the first believers, to any tendency to exaggerate their Christian liberty; to which the temptation would be strong, on account of the corruption of existing governments. We should cultivate,
2. A proper sense of the sacred obligation of obedience. (Ecc. 8:2.) And that in regard of the oath of God. Human authorities are called of God, appointed by Him, and fill their places, not on account of their own intrinsic excellencies or merit, but by His permissionby that act of Providence which has placed them where they are. We are under as sacred an obligation to obey them as if we had solemnly ratified the promise of obedience by a formal appeal to heaven. We should cultivate
3. A delicate refinement of behaviour where duty has special difficulties. (Ecc. 8:3.) In the kings presence it is proper to maintain a reserved and careful behaviour. If the king grants not our request, it is unseemly to show our vexation by departing from his presence in haste. On the other hand, we should not carry our firmness so far as to appear obstinate. We may have to sacrifice our own private feeling to that veneration which is due to office. The indulgence of improper tempers towards lawful authority might sow the seeds of rebellion far and wide. It is wisdom to study that behaviour which is proper to the occasion, and to avoid all that tends to imperil the safety and good ordering of society. We should cultivate
4. A proper reverence and awe of authority. (Ecc. 8:4.) Rulers, for certain ends of civil society, stand to us in the place of God. We owe them reverence for the sake of their office, and should maintain a wholesome dread of the power committed to their hands.
II. Wisdom imparts Special Fitness for the Discharge of such Duties. He who is truly wise, who fears God, and reverences what is God-like in man, does not delude himself by impossible theories of human society. He possesses that practical wisdom which teaches him how to pass through life smoothly, to abstain from infringing the rights of others, and to labour for the promotion of the general good. The wise man is the best servant of the state.
1. He has a better insight into the reasons and the nature of duty. (Ecc. 8:1.) He knoweth the interpretation of a thing. Lit., of the word. To him the grounds of duty are clear; he is alive to the importance of social order, and brings to the consideration of law a correct moral judgment and the habit of obedience. The great principles of his life are adequate to all the requirements of right conduct between man and man, though they extend beyond it even to the realm of higher duties.
2. He is the subject of a civilising and refining influence. (Ecc. 8:1.) Wisdom is not only a power in the mind and heart, an inward and sacred adornment, but is also a power working outwardly, revealing itself in the style and bearing of a man, and lighting up his countenance with noble expression. It softens all that is repulsive, so that the countenance does not wear that fierce aspect which results from coarse ideas and a selfish heart. This refinement of beauty is an image of that social order and harmony which wisdom tends to produce. It is the pledge of the worlds peace.
3. His obedience to authority is discriminating. (Ecc. 8:5.) He renders not a passive, a blind obedience, as if every command proceeding from merely human authority must be obeyed without questioning. It may be allowed that, in general, it is safe to obey. Whoso keepeth the commandment shall feel no evil thing. He who renders unquestioning obedience may save himself from many troubles. But if he makes this rule absolute, he may have to compromise conscience. Therefore wisdom must be employed to discriminate when human authority is in conflict with those higher duties which we owe to God. A wise man may have to resist the kings command, as Daniel did. An unreasoning, blind obedience is not taught in Scripture. Principle is dearer to the righteous man than safety and comfort. Where human and Divine authority are in conflict, his choice is made. He owes his highest allegiance to the King of Kings.
SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS ON THE VERSES
Ecc. 8:1. None is comparable to the wise man. He alone possesses that real and abiding treasure which cannot be gotten for gold.
The power to investigate the deep reasons of things imparts a majesty and stability to the religious life. The wise man is so fixed upon the solidities of truth that he is not carried about by every wind of doctrine. Piety without intelligence is exposed to the dangers of fanaticism.
Wisdom, though an inward power, hangs out her ensign upon the human countenance.
The power of wisdom to elevate and refine its possessor is a kind of renewal of his physical nature, an earnest of the redemption of the body.
The beauty of the human face divine lies in its expression. The light of wisdom within beams in the countenance, imparting to it the attractive aspect of intelligence and sensibility. It is a mild and lovely light. It does not dazzle and overpower by the studied brilliance of self-display, but with soft and gentle radiance inspires delight, and wins affection; for of genuine wisdom, self-diffident humility is the invariable associate. Such wisdom gives to the countenance the expression both of dignity and grace [Wardlaw].
Boldness may, with greater strictness and accuracy, be rendered by effrontery, or arrogance. What Solomon seems to say is, that wisdom communicates to the face of its owner an aspect of meekness and gentleness very different from that air of imperious and boastful confidence which it once wore. None is so arrogant as the ignorant or half-instructed; none so unpretending as the man of largest knowledge and deepest thought [Buchanan].
Ecc. 8:2. Wisdom throws light upon every relation in which man is placed, and makes every duty to appear in clear definition. That book which reveals the highest truths does not disdain to give authoritative commands regarding the every-day work of man in the world.
The powers that be are ordained of God, says St. Paul (Rom. 13:1). They are ordered and appointed by Him just as much as those who occupy the most sacred offices of the Church. Kings may be imperfect, but so were the Scribes and Pharisees who sat in Moses seat; yet this does not destroy the obligation to hear and obey their lawful words.
The wise mans sense of duty to kings rests upon a higher motive than fear, or the love of security. It is with him a sacred obligation.
Since men must life in civil society, they have a right to consider how they shall thus live. The observance of the laws is necessary to secure the common good, and the king is but the living law.
Civil obedience is not a question between man and man merely; but, as we are here emphatically reminded, it is also a question between man and God. The same oath of God expressed or understood, by which the subject is bound to keep the kings commandment, limits and regulates the very obligation which it imposes. So long as obedience to the kings command does not involve disobedience to any commandment of God Himself, obedience is imperative. The oath of God exalts loyalty into a religious duty [Buchanan].
Ecc. 8:3. Our own vexation and disappointment should not destroy our proper reverence for those who represent the law.
A wise man will avoid everything in thought, temper, and action tending to sow the seeds of sedition.
Whilst your first and most sacred regard should be to the oath of God, yet your own interest is also involved. You are in the kings power. He may degrade you from your station, deprive you of your emoluments, and inflict upon you such punishment as shall not be alleviated by the consciousness of its being undeserved. The headstrong passion that persists in evil because it cannot brook submission, is itself inexcusable, it may cost you too dear [Wardlaw].
Beware of rashly casting off allegiance to your lawful sovereign under any temporary influence of wounded pride or passion; or of being led away into sedition or rebellion by the specious plea of reforming the existing order of things. Ahithophel did this in the days of David, and he came, in consequence, to a miserable end. Or, again, if any man have been seduced by evil counsel, or hurried by resentment or ambition into some unlawful attitude or act, let him not stand in the evil thing. To persist is only to aggravate the offence, and to make its punishment more inevitable and severe [Buchanan].
Passion, whether in the form of haughty disdain or of stubbornness, is unfriendly to the proper discharge of duty.
Ecc. 8:4. Without power to enforce it, the law would be but mere advice.
The power of law and government is very great. The law never sleeps. It has a retentive memory, and it has long arms. Joab, proud and imperious, and confiding in the impunity which his position at the head of Davids army appeared to give him, trampled on the kings commandment, but nevertheless he found to his cost, in the end, that where the word of a king is there is power [Buchanan].
There is no appeal from the kings decree, as he acknowledges no earthly superior. Be it wise or foolish, good or evil, that decree must take effect. The victims of tyranny, suffering for a righteous cause, may indeed appeal to the Heavenly King; but that appeal cannot be heard till the final Judgment.
Authority could never command respect, or be invested with its fitting character of sacredness, if it were compelled to bear upon its very front a proclamation of the conditions upon which it might be set at naught. Hence the unqualified language in which Solomon speaks in this passage [Buchanan].
Ecc. 8:5. The true liberty for the subject is the liberty of law. Obedience is the condition of safety and protection.
There are times in which obedience to human laws has peculiar difficulty and perplexity for the wise man. But his wisdom disposes him patiently to wait, to watch the time and opportunity, and to judge soberly what conduct is right for him.
Our cause may be righteous and good, but if we lack discretion, our best designs must fall to naught.
Mistaken zeal is ever ready to precipitate events. But he that believeth shall not make haste. He can afford calmly to wait.
There are three enquiries which the man of true wisdom is ever proposing to himself:What should I do? When should I do it? How should it be done? He pays regard not only to the matter or quality of his actions, but to the time and the manner of them. He attends to circumstances in every department of his conduct; in imparting counsel, in administering reproof, in seeking the redress of grievances, in promoting needful improvements and reform;never forgetting that success very often depends as much on the choice of a right season, and the adoption of a proper way of performing an action, as upon the action itself [Wardlaw].
What is fitting must be studied as well as what is right and good. A wise man observes the proprieties proper to the time, place, and occasion. St. Paul, while adhering firmly to principle, followed no unyielding methods of action; but by becoming all things to all men, thus won many to Christ.
Even innocence is but a poor and insufficient protection in a world like this. The wisdom of the serpent is needed as the trusty sentinel of the harmlessness of the dove.
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
C. ADMONITIONS TO USE WISDOM IN THE WORK OF SOLVING THE PROBLEMS OF LIFE 8:19:18
1. Work in submission to the king. Ecc. 8:1-8
TEXT 8:18
1
Who is like the wise man and who knows the interpretation of a matter? A mans wisdom illumines him and causes his stern face to beam.
2
I say, Keep the command of the king because of the oath before God.
3
Do not be in a hurry to leave him. Do not join in an evil matter, for he will do whatever he pleases.
4
Since the word of the king is authoritative, who will say to him, What are you doing?
5
He who keeps a royal command experiences no trouble, for a wise heart knows the proper time and procedure.
6
For there is a proper time and procedure for every delight, when a mans trouble is heavy upon him.
7
If no one knows what will happen, who can tell him when it will happen?
8
No man has the authority to restrain the wind with the wind, or authority over the day of death; and there is no discharge in the time of war, and evil will not deliver those who practice it.
THOUGHT QUESTIONS 8:18
225.
Who is the man who knows the interpretation of a matter?
226.
What two things will wisdom do (verse one)?
227.
Are the king and God to be taken synonymously in verse three?
228.
After reading through verse eight, can you find evidence that requires that the king be interpreted to mean God? Discuss.
229.
Does God approve of entering into an agreement with Him through an oath? (Cf. Exo. 22:11; 2Sa. 21:7; Eze. 17:18)
230.
Does the him in verse three refer to God or to the king who rules the land? (Cf. Ecc. 10:4)
231.
What word in verse four indicates why the king can do whatever pleases him?
232.
What will keep a wise man from getting into trouble with the local authority? (verse five)
233.
What principle taught in verse six has previously been detailed in chapter three, verses one and seventeen?
234.
According to verse seven, man does not know what will happen to him or when it will happen. Read Ecc. 3:22; Ecc. 6:12; Ecc. 7:14 and Ecc. 9:12. In each case, determine if it is the when or the what that Solomon refers to.
235.
Identify the four things in verse eight that man cannot do.
PARAPHRASE 8:18
Who can compare with the wise man? Who but a wise man understands what things mean, or knows the interpretation of a matter? It is because of wisdom that a mans face shines like a light, and the hardness of his countenance changes until his face actually glows. It is wise counsel to keep the kings command. Have you not made an oath before God that you will keep his command? We know the king will do whatever pleases him. Therefore, you will be wise if you do not hurry from his presence simply because you are agitated with his command. Above all, do not stand for an evil cause. It is the king who has the authority in the land and his word is law. None dare say to him, What are you doing? A wise man knows when and how to acthe knows the proper time and procedure. He who keeps the law of the king will discover that he is free from every evil thing, and will therefore remain out of trouble. You have already been instructed in the truth that there is a proper time and place for every desire of manyet, you must be aware of the heavy judgment and chastisement which often presses heavy upon man. A wise man considers all of these things because he does not know what will happen, and there is none to tell him when it will happen. Consider this: no man has the authority to hold back the wind with the wind; no man has the authority to hold back the spirit of man in the time of death; neither can man claim immunity in time of war, nor be discharged from the battle; no man who practices evil or becomes involved in wickedness can expect to be delivered by such evil in his time of distress.
COMMENT 8:18
As noted in the outline, there are five distinct divisions in this section which relate to solving some of the problems of life. In each instance, wisdom is the guide which leads the reader to the correct solution. The first area of discussion calls attention to the authority in the land, suggesting that submission to the law will result in pleasant relationships between the king and his subjects. The heart of the discussion is summarized in the words, He who keeps a royal command experiences no trouble.
Ecc. 8:1 There is no man on earth who can compare with a wise man. Such a man excels them all. It is evident that Solomon continues to extol wisdom. His emphasis is noted by his declaration that only a wise man can explain the difficult, and drive to the very foundation of things. There is more to the wise mans ability than that which equips him to be an interpreter of proverbs or an adequate manipulator of words. He can unfold the mysterious. He has the ability to draw back the veil and present a clear word picture of why things are.
This gift of understanding has a direct result on the wise mans heart which manifests itself immediately in his face. His knowledge has brought an inner awareness that he knows and understands both Gods word and Gods providential activities. His face literally shows it. He has a cheerful soul and his face shines. His face is but a reflection of his heart.
His face was formally stern. This word is variously translated into hardness, harshness, boldness, and fierce countenance (Deu. 28:50). His wisdom transforms his face and causes it to beam. The marginal reading in the NASB reads: causes his stern face to change. Examples of such changes of facial expressions are found in Exo. 34:29-30, Act. 6:15; Act. 7:14. Knowledge of the true God, and the awareness that one is keeping His commandments, results in both joy and happiness. Solomons father had expressed it simply: The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes (Psa. 19:8). Sin causes the hardness of face, while righteousness drives out sin and welcomes peace and contentment. Jesus aptly struck at the heart of the matter when He said, Therefore every one who hears these words of Mine and acts upon them, may be compared to a wise man (Mat. 7:24).
Ecc. 8:2 Two problems arise from this verse: (1) Who is the king? Is this a reference to God or to an earthly king? (2) What oath was stated before God by the people in Solomons day? Authorities are divided on the first question but have generally agreed on the second. Let us consider the latter question first.
It is not so important that one determines the exact wording of the oath as this is not the point of Solomons argument. The point is that the oath was made before God, and it stands as a reminder that (1) it was made before the highest authority, and (2) it pertains to submission to the rule of the king. One such oath is recorded in 2Ki. 11:17 where Jehoida made a covenant between the Lord and the king and the people, that they should be the Lords people, also between the king and the people. To be the Lords people is tantamount to the submission to the rule or the authority of the Lord. It is further noted in this illustration that a distinction is made between the Lord and the king. Israel saw the king as Gods representative who was appointed to carry out His will on earth. Thus, the oath was made to the highest authority and also bound the Israelites to the authority of their king. Instructions concerning such oaths are given in Exo. 22:11; 1Ki. 2:43; 2Sa. 21:7 and Eze. 17:18.
To whom does the term king refer? Many commentaries view the king as God and suggest that the entire context must be interpreted as to our submission to the heavenly King. However, the 2Ki. 11:17 passage makes a clear distinction between the people, the earthly king, and the Lord. It appears that such a distinction would also capture the spirit of this passage. Everything spoken of in reference to the king could apply without difficulty to an earthly king. In forcing the meaning of the term king to refer to God, seems to be demanding more than either Solomon or the context intended to convey. New Testament parallels are found in Mat. 12:21; Rom. 13:1-7 and 1Pe. 2:13-17.
Ecc. 8:3 To break the oath is equal to entering into an association with evil. Therefore, the subjects of the kingdom are admonished not only to keep the command of the king, but to refrain from joining in an evil matter. The fear of the Lord has previously been defined (Cf. Ecc. 5:7, p. 117) as departing from evil and doing that which is good. Solomon isnt introducing new material. He continues to pursue the characteristics of a wise man. In this instance, a wise man is one who recognizes the authority of the king and lives within the restrictions of the law.
Do not be in a hurry to leave him. The king is on the side of right; to depart from him would be to align oneself with evil. Cain is an example of one who because of his evil deed was forced to leave the companionship and security of the side of right. It is written of him, immediately after he had murdered his brother, that Cain went out from the presence of the Lord (Gen. 4:16). The relationship the kings of Israel enjoyed with God was unique in history. There was a much closer correlation between their laws and the law of God than has existed in any other period of time. However, the principle that authority is ordained of God is still true. On the whole, the admonition of this verse remains a valid one. Paul wrote: Let every person be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. Therefore he who resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves (Rom. 13:1-2).
To do whatever he pleases should be understood to mean that the king will inflict whatever punishment he wishes. It is the evil doer who draws the wrath of the king.
Ecc. 8:4 The authority of the king has been established. On the basis of this conclusion, it must be admitted that none has the right to question the kings decision or to question the punishment which he places upon the wicked. The verse is not to be taken as blanket approval for all the activities of the king. It is to be understood in the light of two things: (1) Disobedient citizens who depart from the presence of the king and stand in an evil matter deserve punishment; (2) the punishment appointed is the prerogative of the kingnone has the right to question him on such a matter.
Ecc. 8:5 For authority to be meaningful, there must be laws and subsequent punishment exacted upon those who break the laws. Who is the wise man? A partial answer is arrived at in this verse. A wise man is one who keeps a royal command. It is generally true that obedience to the law results in peace. This principle is valid whether the law is Gods law or mans law.
Another characteristic of the wise man is that he recognizes that judgment and punishment will fall upon those who break the law. He knows there is a proper time and procedure. He practices patience and thus lives in peace. Sometimes such assurance is the only compensation for one who does right. Especially is this true when the authority is on the side of the oppressors (Ecc. 4:1), or when the law-abiding poor have their wages withheld and on occasion are put to death (Jas. 5:4-6). Even in the face of such extreme punishment they are encouraged to retain their wisdom: you too be patient; strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand (Jas. 5:8). The lesson from Ecclesiastes, chapter three, had been that there is a time for everything under the sun. Now the Preacher is underlining his previous contention: God will judge both the righteous man and the wicked man, for a time for every matter and every deed is there (Ecc. 3:17). Even God patiently waits until the sin has ripened fully on the vine. Man would like for punishment to fall swiftly as well as justly but life is not always this way. The wise heart recognizes that such judgment will come with certainty and thus tunes all of his thoughts and activities to this channel. It is at the fountain of patience and deep conviction in the justice of God that he drinks.
Ecc. 8:6 The preposition for indicates that this is an extension of the line of reasoning established in verse five. The phrase restates the closing thought of the preceding verse. A proper time and procedure for every delight has been sufficiently demonstrated in chapter three. However, the statement, when a mans trouble is heavy upon him, needs explanation. Who is the man who is under the burden of trouble? Is he the good, wise man or the sinner who has departed from the side of the king? If it is the good man, then evil men have afflicted him and he must learn to patiently wait until the time and seasons of Gods providence bring about Gods justice. It is considered a heavy trouble because he is required to bear it until the appropriate time. On the other hand, if it is indeed the sinner who is under consideration, then the heavy trouble is just and he anquishes beneath it because he knows it is of his own doing. He knows that the judgment of God will eventually fall upon him. He has broken all the rules and departed from the kings cause; he finds himself standing in an evil matter. Now he must subscribe to punishment decreed by the king. This latter interpretation is most tenable as it fits best into the total context of the passage. Such an argument presses upon the mind of the one who would choose the road of wisdom that there are rewards indeed! Additional proof for this contention is found in the major premise of the passage: He who keep the royal command experiences no trouble.
Ecc. 8:7 The evil mans suffering is compounded because he knows neither when he will be punished nor what will be his punishment. He knows only that it is due him and will be forthcoming. Behind the law in the land stands the authority of God. Kings exact Gods punishment and are thus a terror to those who do evil. However, kings may be bribed or influenced to compromise or act unjustly. In such instances the justice of God overrides the injustices of men. If not immediately, in due season (Cf. Ecc. 8:11). This awareness weighs heavily upon the mind of the evil doer. He lives in constant fear as he does not know when or how his punishment will come. Solomon is careful not to insert the conditional if in his declaration. He is pressing for the inescapable: judgment is coming!
Ecc. 8:8 The preceding interpretation appears to be logical in view of the closing fourfold argument Solomon now presents. He has contended that a wise man will live in harmony with the law of the land; in doing so he will neither bring the wrath of the king nor the wrath of God upon him. He now offers the closing arguments to sustain his contention:
(1) No man has the authority to restrain the wind with the wind.
The term translated wind in this first statement is also commonly translated spirit. It is improbable that one can arrive at sufficient proof to ascertain one or the other. It is obvious that the NASB translated ruach as wind. There is a rather equal distribution of views in both translations and interpretations. The primary purpose of the verse is best served when the lesson of the verse is determined, not necessarily whether the term is translated wind or spirit. On this same subject Jesus said, The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going (Joh. 3:8). At least the truth taught in the two statements is the same: one cannot see or control the wind. But what is the intent of the observation? One conclusion is found in the fact that only God has control of the wind, man cannot hold back or control the wind even with the wind. The wind moves about according to an appointed order. Solomon described it as Blowing toward the south, then turning toward the north, the wind continues swirling along; and on its circular courses the wind returns (Ecc. 1:6). Again he stated that we do not know the path of the wind (Ecc. 11:5). The lesson seems to be that the evil man has no more control over his inevitable punishment which shall come upon him than he does over the wind. Both are in the hands of God. One is carried out through the laws of nature while the other is arranged on the basis of compensating for evil and is determined by the authority of the king. God is the author of both! This lessonGod is in control of the laws of ultimate justice just as He controls the wind and other laws of natureis in harmony with the immediate and greater context of Ecclesiastes. It also justifies this emphasis that Solomon places on the uncontrollable nature of the wind.
If one feels compelled to interpret the term spirit as breath of life, rather than wind, as many authorities do (Cf. A. R. Fausset, E. W. Hengstenberg, J. P. Lange, H. C. Leupold, Et. Al.) then this phrase is a parallelism with the following part and simply restates the same thought. If this is the preferred interpretation, then the following discussion will explain the parallelism.
(2) No man has the authority . . . over the day of death.
What has been referred to in this discussion as the ultimate justice of God is the judgment facing every man when his spirit is finally released from his body. The Preacher knows that when this happens, the spirit will return to God (Ecc. 12:7), At that time, the unequal judgments of this earth, the suffering of the innocent, the apparent escape of evil doers, will be brought to light. The crooked shall be made straight. The New Testament is also explicit on this matter: inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once, and after this comes judgment (Heb. 9:27).
Many would restrain the spirit in the face of death if it were possible. Fortunes would be exchanged for a little more time. The epilogue of mens lives under such circumstances would see a rash of repentance and restitution. However, no man can decide to add a few days or years to his own life when death calls. It was true in Solomons time and it is still true today. Once again the Preacher is bringing into focus the distinction between the wise man and the fool. The wise man has no more control over his time of death than the fool does, but the wise man is prepared. He keeps the command of the king . . . and experiences no trouble.
It should be observed here for the Christian reader that Jesus teaches us to keep the command of the King and in so doing we shall find rest for our souls. (Cf. Jer. 6:16; Mat. 11:29).
(3) There is no discharge in time of war.
Just as one is bound by the rigors of death and must submit to its call, there is no escape from the demands of service placed upon one during the time of war. The analogy is made to illustrate once more that a wise heart knows the proper time and procedure (Ecc. 8:5 b). The following excerpt from The Pulpit Commentary illustrates the principle Solomon refers to:
Thus we read that when Oeabazus, the father of three sons, petitioned Darius to leave one at home, the tyrant replied that he would leave him all three, and had them put to death. Again, Pythius, a Lydian, asking Xerxes to exempt his eldest son from accompanying the army of Greece, was reviled by the monarch in unmeasured terms, and was punished for his presumption by seeing his son slain before his eyes, the body divided into two pieces, and placed on either side of the road by which the army passed, that all might be warned of the fate awaiting any attempt to evade military service (Herod., IV, 84; vii, 38).[11]
[11] J. S. Excell, H. D. M. Spence (Editors). Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, The Pulpit Commentary (London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner and Company, 1893), p. 201.
Although there were exemptions prior to the battle (Cf. Deu. 20:5-8), none were made during the time of war. It is inappropriate to use this argument as evidence that Ecclesiastes had to be written late, during the Persian period, because Israel made some exceptions and there were none granted during the Persian rule. The point is not that every man had to be engaged in warfare, but once the battle is underway there is no escape or discharge. One is locked in as surely as he faces death and judgment. The lesson once again teaches that man should be on the side of right and refrain from joining in an evil matter.
(4) Evil will not deliver those who practice it.
The fourth and final reason stated in this verse has a parallel truth given in Ecc. 8:13 where Solomon reminds his readers, But it will not be well for the evil man and he will not lengthen his days like a shadow, because he does not fear God.
What wickedness or evil cannot do, wisdom can. Wisdom does deliver those who practice it.
The tragedy of practicing evil is not only its failure to deliver one from the judgment of the King or the Lord, but their own wickedness will stand against them in the face of that judgment. The rich oppressors mentioned by James are examples of the severity of casting ones lot with the wicked. He writes, Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten. Your gold and your silver have rusted; and their rust will be a witness against you and will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the Last Days that you have stored up your treasure (Jas. 5:2-3)!
The wicked could raise the question: Deliver from what? The inference is strong regarding the necessity of escape. Once again the reader is reminded of the law of retribution that has been presented in this section as a major theme: One will reap what he sows. The severity of their evil demands severity of judgment. They shall not escape!
FACT QUESTIONS 8:18
411.
Identify the guide that leads the reader to solving the problems of life.
412.
What will result in a pleasant relationship between the king and his subjects?
413.
What specific ability on the part of the wise man causes his face to shine (verse one)?
414.
What causes the hardness of face?
415.
Identify the two problems of verse two.
416.
Solomon is suggesting that the oath is a reminder of what two things?
417.
Give evidence that the king could be an earthly king.
418.
Breaking the oath is equal to what?
419.
Explain what is meant by leaving the king.
420.
What is the specific meaning given to the statement that the king will do whatever he pleases?
421.
List the characteristics of the wise man found in verse five.
422.
According to verse six, trouble is heavy upon a man. Is this man the wise man or the sinner? Discuss.
423.
Who is it that does not experience trouble?
424.
What compounds the evil mans trouble (verse seven)?
425.
Give evidence that both Solomon and Jesus taught that the wind is not controlled by the power of men.
426.
What lesson concerning the wind should the evil man learn? How will the same lesson comfort the wise man?
427.
Explain what is meant by the ultimate justice of God.
428.
Were exceptions from battle granted certain Israelites in time of war? Explain.
429.
Could one be dismissed from battle after the war began?
430.
What double jeopardy does the wicked man experience (verse eight)?
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
VIII.
(1) This verse in praise of wisdom can be connected either with what precedes or what follows. (See Hos. 14:9.)
Interpretation.The word occurs elsewhere in the Chaldee parts of Daniel.
Boldness.Impudence is removed from the countenance. See Pro. 7:13; Pro. 21:29; Sir. 13:25.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
1. Who the wise Wisdom makes a man superior to other men. Whatever may be the wise man’s condition, he is by virtue of his character a nobleman in his own right. “My mind to me a kingdom is.”
His face to shine An illuminated, intelligent soul modifies the countenance, turning its hard, stolid heaviness to an expression of grace and culture. The type of the Grecian face changed greatly by the refinement of the two centuries before Pericles. If now the wise man is by this conciliatory verse shown to be the crown of his race, he can quietly bear transient, though unjust, inconveniences.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Advice With Regard to a Wise Man’s Responsibility in Serving the King ( Ecc 8:1-9 ).
We must not interpret these verses without regard to what we know about this king. His instruction will surely accord with his own views on authority, and its responsibilities. So our interpretation will depend on our view of who and what the writer is. Some see these instructions as being general advice, given simply in the light of the fact that most kings were despots. Others see them as the instructions of an enlightened king. In fact both interpretations are possible from the wording. It is a question of approach. But it seems to us that the latter is the reasonable position to take.
Ecc 8:1
‘Who is as the wise man? And who knows the interpretation of a thing? A man’s wisdom makes his face shine and the severity (‘strength’) of his face is changed.’
No one can compare with a wise man. No one else can solve problems like he can. His very wisdom makes his face glow, and his face is peaceful and content, demonstrating the genuineness of his wisdom. It does not carry the signs of discontent and worry like the faces of others. Thus he has great responsibility.
Ecc 8:2
‘I say to you, keep the king’s command and that in regard of your sacred oath (‘the oath of God’). Do not be hasty to leave his presence. Do not persist in an evil thing. For he does whatever pleases him. For the king’s word is powerful (‘has power’), and who may say to him, “What are you doing?”. Whoever does what he is commanded will know no evil thing, and a wise man’s heart discerns time and judgment.’
First the wise man must recognise that if he serves the king he is under authority, so he must prove that he is wise. He must have regard to his sacred oath and not be too hasty about leaving the king’s presence, that is, in order to avoid giving unpleasant advice. The thought is that he should not be in a hurry to avoid unpleasant problems by suggesting he has no knowledge on the matter, or that he is not the best person to ask, thus basically tactfully refusing his assistance. He must stand firm and give his wise advice.
Or it may refer to planned disloyalty. In which case the ‘evil thing’ would be whatever was being planned against the king.
‘Do not persist in an evil thing.’ That is in continuing to advise, or approve of, something that he feels is wrong, (or alternately something that would displease the king. But it is not likely that this writer would expect his wise men to be so subservient). He must give the king honest advice, and if necessary advise a different course. (We must remember that the writer is against oppression – Ecc 4:1).
‘For he does whatever pleases him. For the king’s word is powerful (‘has power’), and who may say to him, “What are you doing?” ’ This might mean that to refuse to assist the king, or to do something that will displease him, will only put him in trouble, because the king’s word is powerful and he can do whatever he wants. But it is more likely that it is pointing out that the wise man should consider that because the king is all powerful, to give him bad advice will be harmful, in view of the fact that he has absolute authority to carry it through (compare the false advice of Hushai the Archite which resulted in the defeat of Absalom (1Ki 16:31)). Thus he must ensure that he gives only the best of advice.
‘Whoever does what he is commanded will know no evil thing, and a wise man’s heart discerns time and judgment.’ If the wise man is obedient to what he is commanded he need have no fear of the consequences. For the reason that he has been chosen as a wise man is because he knows what is the right time to do things, and what is the best way to go about it. So he must speak his mind and give good advice in the light of what is known.
‘A wise man’s heart discerns time and judgment.’ It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that underlying these words are two themes of the book, the passing time-line under the sun (Ecc 3:1-11) and the fact of final judgment (Ecc 11:9; Ecc 12:14). The wise man discerns both. He is aware both of time and everlastingness.
Others see it as meaning that he is to understand that obedience is the wise course, because he will then avoid unpleasantness or worse, but this would not be the advice of a benevolent king, and this writer is portrayed as a benevolent king.
Ecc 8:6-7
‘For to every proposal (purpose) there is a time and judgment, for the misery of man is great upon him. For he does not know what will be, for who can tell him how it will be?’
The wise man’s advice is needed because every proposal needs to be put into effect at the right time and in the right way, in view of the fact of the heavy burden of misery under which most people live. They do not know what is going to happen next, and have no one to give them guidance. It would not be good to add to their misery by giving bad advice.
Ecc 8:8
‘There is no man who has power over the breath to retain the breath, nor has he power over the day of death. And there is no discharge in that war. Nor will wickedness deliver him who is given to it.’
None of the people can prevent themselves from dying, for they do not have control over the breath of life. Nor do they know when the day of their death will be. And none can ask to be discharged from the war of life and death. It is not in their hands. Nor can a wicked man finally avoid it by wicked methods (contrast Ecc 7:15). He may avoid it for a time, but in the end death will catch up with him. So death is unavoidable for all.
Ecc 8:9
‘All this I have seen, and applied my heart to every work that is done under the sun. There is a time in which one man has power over another to his hurt.’
The writer had paid great attention to all that was being done on the earth. And one thing that he had recognised was that there are times when one person’s action can cause great harm to another. He sees the wise man’s behaviour as an example of this. If he does not give honest advice in some circumstances others may well suffer grievously. Thus he must give his advice honestly. And indeed all who are put in a position where their decisions may affect others, should behave honestly.
This is a reminder to us all that our actions can affect other people. We too must therefore be honest and thoughtful in all we do, considering its effect on others.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Chapter 8 Advice With Regard To Serving The King. The Problem of the Death of the Wicked.
His survey now digresses to consider a wise man’s responsibility when serving the king, followed by a number of expressions of wisdom as befitted the words of a wise man.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Ecc 8:11 Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.
Ecc 8:11
1Co 11:31-32, “For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.”
Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures
Indoctrination: Practical Wisdom to Fear God In Ecc 7:1 thru Ecc 11:8 the Preacher gives illustrations of practical wisdom, or doctrine on how to fear God in this life. In other words, these proverbs give us wisdom on how to bring our lives into God’s divine plan that we were created to pursue. Much of this passage is delivered as a collection of proverbs, or short, pithy sayings, that summarize wisdom and is very similar to the book of Proverbs in structure. However, I believe that these particular set of Proverbs are designed to guide us into finding the answers for how to serve the Lord with all of our strength.
Why is this section the longest one in the book of Ecclesiastes? Perhaps the reason lies in the fact that the underlying theme of the book is the keeping of God’s commandments in the fear of the Lord. Thus, the Preacher takes the time to list these commandments. In a similar way, the longest section in the book of Proverbs is wisdom’s call (Proverbs 1-9), since man’s daily walk in wisdom requires him to constantly recognize and hear wisdom’s call in order to make the right decisions each day.
Outline Here are a number of topics discussed in this section:
Wisdom Seen in Being Sober-minded Ecc 7:1-6
Wisdom’s Ability to Protect Ecc 7:11-12
Wisdom Found in Recognizing God’s Hand in Daily Life Ecc 7:13-14
Wisdom Found in Moderation Ecc 7:15-18
Wisdom Found in Ignoring What Others Say About You Ecc 7:21-22
The Preacher’s Pursuit of Wisdom Ecc 7:23-25
The Tongue of the Wise and the Fool Ecc 10:11-14
The Principles of Sowing and Reaping Ecc 11:1-6
A Reminder of the Vanities of Life Ecc 11:7-8
Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures
In Civil Relations
v. 1. Who is as the wise man? v. 2. I counsel thee to keep the king’s commandment, v. 3. Be not hasty to go out of his sight, v. 4. Where the word of a king is, there is power, v. 5. Whoso keepeth the commandment, v. 6. Because to every purpose there is time and judgment, therefore the misery of man, v. 7. For he knoweth not v. 8. There is no man that hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit,
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
EXPOSITION
Ecc 8:1-9
Section 5. There is no use in repining or rebelling; true wisdom counsels obedience to the powers that be, and submission to the dispensations of Providence. However oppressive a tyrant may prove sure retribution awaits him.
Ecc 8:1
Who is as the wise man? i.e. Who is like, equal to, the wise man? The somewhat sudden question occurs naturally after the results of the search for wisdom mentioned at the end of the last chapter. The thought is not, as in Hos 14:9 and Jer 9:12, “Who is wise?” butNo one Call be compared with a wise man; he has no compeer. And who [like him] knoweth the interpretation of a thing? Who, so well as the wise man, understands the proper relation of circumstances, sees into human affairs and God’s dispensations in the case of nations and individuals? Such a one takes the right view of life. The word pesher, “interpretation,” occurs (peshar) continually in Daniel, and nowhere else and is Chaldaic. The Vulgate, which connects these two clauses with Ecc 7:1-29; renders, Quis cognovit solutionem verbi? So the Septuagint. The “word” or “saying” may be the question proposed above Concerning the happy life, or the proverb that immediately follows. But dabar is better rendered “thing,” as Ecc 1:8; Ecc 7:8. A man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine; Septuagint, , “will enlighten, illuminate.” The serene light within makes itself visible in the outward expression; the man is contented arid cheerful, and shows this in his look and bearing. This is an additional praise of wisdom. Thus Ecclesiasticus 13:25, 26, “The heart of man changeth his countenance, whether it be for good or evil. A cheerful countenance is a token of a heart that is in prosperity.” Cicero, ‘De Orat.,’ 3:57, “Omnes enim motus animi suum quemdam a natura habet vultum et sonum et gestum; corpusque totum homiuis et ejus omnis vultus omnesque voces, ut nervi in fidibus, ita sonant, ut motu animi quoque sunt pulsae.” And the boldness of his face shall be changed. The word translated “boldness” is , which means properly “strength,” and is best taken of the coarseness and impudence engendered by ignorance and want of culture. Wisdom, when it fills the heart, changes the countenance to an open genial look, which wins confidence and love. Delitzsch refers to the well-worn lines of Ovid, ‘Epist.,’ 2.9. 47
“Adde, quod ingenuas didicisse fideliter artes
Emollit mores, nec sinit esse feros.”
The Septuagint, “And a man shameless in countenance will be hated,” shows an alteration in the text, and does not agree with the context. Vulgate, Et potentissimus faciem illius commutabit, “And the Almighty will change his face,” where again the text is not accurately followed.
Ecc 8:2
I counsel thee to keep the king’s commandment. The pronoun I stands in the Hebrew without a verb, and some take it as the answer to the question in Ecc 8:1, “Who is like the wise man?” I, who am now teaching you. But it is better to regard the pronoun as emphasizing the following rule, supplying some verb, as, “Say, adviseI, for my part, whatever others may do or advise, I counsel thee;” the injunction being given in the imperative mood. The Septuagint and Syriac omit the pronoun altogether. The warning implies that the writer was living under kingly, and indeed despotic, government, and it was the part of a wise man to exhibit cheerful obedience. Ben-Sira observes that wise men teach us how to serve great men (Ecclesiasticus 8:8). Such conduct is not only prudent, but really a religious- duty, even as the prophets counsel submission to Assyrian and Chaldean rulers (see Jer 27:12; Jer 29:7; Eze 17:15). The liege lord, being God’s vicegerent, must be reverenced and obeyed. St. Paul, though he does not quote Ecclesiastes, may have had this passage in mind when he wrote (Rom 13:1), “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God,” etc.; and (verse 5), “Ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience’ sake.” The “king” in the text is understood by some to mean God, but the following clause renders this improbable, and it is wisdom in its political aspect that is here regarded. And that in regard of the oath of God. The vav is explicative; “in regard of,” or “because of,” as Ecc 3:18. “The oath of God” is the oath of allegiance to the king, taken in the name of God, under his invocation (comp. Exo 22:11; 1Ki 2:43). So we read (2Ki 11:17) of a covenant between king and people, and people and king, in the time of Jehoiada; Nebuchadnezzar made Zedekiah swear by God to be his vassal (2Ch 36:13); and Josephus (‘Ant.,’ 12.1; 11.8. 3) relates that Ptolemy Soter, son of Lagus (following herein the example of Darius), exacted an oath from the Jews in Egypt to be true to him and his successors. We know that both Babylonian and Persian monarchs exacted an oath of fealty from conquered nations, making them swear by the gods whom they worshipped, the selection of deities being left to them,
Ecc 8:3
Further advice concerning political behavior. Be not hasty to go out of his (the king’s) sight. Do not, from some hasty impulse, or induced by harsh treatment, cast off your allegiance to your liege lord. We have the phrase, “go away,” in the sense of quitting of service or desertion of a duty, in Gen 4:16; Hos 11:2. So St. Peter urges servants to be subject unto their masters, “not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward” (1Pe 2:18). Solomon might have given this advice to the Israelites who were ready to follow Jeroboam’s lead; though they could have remained loyal to Rehoboam only from high religious motives. But it is better to bear even a heavy yoke than to rebel. The Septuagint has, “Be not hasty; thou shalt go from his presence”which seems to mean, “Be not impatient, and all will be well.” But the authorized rendering is correct (comp. Ecc 10:4). We may quote Mendelssohn’s comment cited by Chance on Job 34:16, “This is a great rule in politics, that the people must have no power to pronounce judgment upon the conduct of a king, whether it be good or bad; for the king judges the people, and not the reverse; and if it were not for this rule, the country would never be quiet, and without rebels against the king and his law.” Stand not in an evil thing; Vulgate, Neque permaneas in opere malo, “Persist not in an evil affair.” But the verb here implies rather the engaging in a matter than continuing an undertaking already begun. The “affair” is conspiracy, insurrection; and Koheleth warns against entering upon and taking part in any such attempt. This seems to be the correct explanation of the clause; but it is, perhaps intentionally, ambiguous, and is capable of other interpretations. Thus Ginsburg, “Do not stand up (in a passion) because of an evil word.” Others, “Obey not a sinful command,” or “Hesitate not at an evil thing,” i.e. if the king orders it. Wordsworth, referring to Psa 1:1. renders, “Stand not in the way of sinners,” which seems to be unsuitable to the context. The Septuagint gives, “Stand not in an evil word” (, perhaps “matter”). The reason for the injunction follows. For he doeth whatsoever pleaseth him. The irresponsible power of a despotic monarch is here signified, though the terms are applicable (as some, indeed, take them as alone appertaining) to God himself (but see Pro 20:2). The Septuagint combines with this clause the commencement of the following verse, “For he will do whatsover he pleases, even as a king using authority ().” Some manuscripts add , “he speaks.”
Ecc 8:4
Where the word of a king is, there is power. A further confirmation of the last thought. More accurately, “Inasmuch as the word of a king is powerful” (shilton, Ecc 8:8). This last word is used in Daniel (Dan 3:2) for “a lord,” or “ruler.” The king does as he thinks fit because his mandate is all-powerful, and must be obeyed, And who may say unto him, What doest thou? The same expression is found applied to God (Job 9:12; Isa 45:9; Wis. 12:12). The absolute authority of a despot is spoken of in the same terms as the irresistible power of Almighty God. . “God’s living image is an earthly king.”
Ecc 8:5
Whoso keepeth the commandment shall feel no evil thing. This is an encouragement to obedience to royal authority (comp. Pro 24:21, Pro 24:22; Rom 13:3). The context plainly shows that it is not God’s commandment that is spoken of (though, of course, the maxim would be very true in this case), but the king’s. Nor is it necessarily a servile and unreasoning obedience that is enjoined. Koheleth is dealing with generals. Such cases as that of Daniel and the three children, where obedience would have been sinful, are not here taken into consideration. “Shall feel,” literally, “shall know,” i.e. experience no physical evil. Quiet submission to the powers that be guarantees a peaceful and happy life. Ginsburg and others translate, “knoweth not an evil word,” i.e. is saved from abuse and reproach, which seems somewhat meager, though the Septuagint gives, . The Vulgate is better, Non experietur quidquam malt. And a wise man’s heart discerneth (knoweth) both time and judgment. The verb is the same in both clauses, and ought to have been so translated. The “heart” includes the moral as well as the intellectual faculties; and the maxim says that the wise man bears oppression and remains unexcited even in evil days, because he is convinced that there is a time of judgment coming when all will be righted (Ecc 12:14). The certainty of retributive justice is so strong in his mind that he does not resort to rebellion in order to rectify matters, but possesses his soul in patience, leaving the correction of abuses in God’s hands. Septuagint, “The wise man’s heart knoweth the time of judgment,” making a hendiadys of the two terms. The Vulgate has tempus et responsionem, “time and answer.”
Ecc 8:6
Because. This and the three following clauses all begin with ki, “since,” “for,” and the conjunction ought to have been similarly rendered in all the places. Thus here, for to every purpose there is time and judgment. Here commences a chain of argument to prove the wisdom of keeping quiet under oppression or evil rulers. Everything has its appointed time of duration, and in due course will be brought to judgment (see Ecc 3:1, Ecc 3:17; 41:14). Therefore (for) the misery of man is great upon him. This is a further reason, but its exact signification is disputed. Literally, the evil of the man is heavy upon him (comp. Ecc 6:1). This may mean, as in the Authorized Version, that the affliction which subjects suffer at the hand of a tyrant becomes insupportable, and calls for and receives God’s interposition. Or “the evil” may be the wickedness of the despot, which presses heavily upon him, and under retributive justice will ere long bring him to the ground, and so the oppression will come to an end. This seems to be the most natural interpretation of the passage. The Septuagint, reading differently, has, “For the knowledge of a man is great upon him.” Though what tiffs means it is difficult to say.
Ecc 8:7
For he knoweth not that which shall be. The subject may be man in general, or more probably the evil tyrant. The clause contains a third reason for patience. The despot cannot foresee the future, and goes on blindly filling up the measure of his iniquity, being unable to take any precautions against his inevitable fate (Pro 24:22). Quem Deus vult perdere prius dementat. For who can tell him when it shall be? rather, how it shall be. The fourth portion of the argument. The infatuated man knows not the time when the blow will fall, nor, as here, the manner in which the retribution will come, the form which it will take. Septuagint,” For how it shall be, who will tell him?” The Vulgate paraphrases inaccurately, Quia ignorat prae-terita, et futura nullo scire potest nuntio, “Because he knoweth not the past, and the future he can ascertain by no messenger.”
Ecc 8:8
This verse gives the conclusion of the line of argument which confirms the last clause of Ecc 8:5. There is no man that hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit. If we take “spirit” in the sense of “the breath of life,” explaining the clause to mean that the mightiest despot has no power to retain life when his call comes, we have the same thought repeated virtually in the next clause. It is therefore bettor to take ruach in the sense of “wind” (Gen 8:1). No one can control the course of the wind or know its way (comp. Ecc 11:5, where the same ambiguity exists; Pro 30:4). Koheleth gives here four impossibilities which point to the conclusion already given. The first is man’s inability to check the viewless wind or to know whence it comes or whither it goes (Joh 3:8). Equally impotent is the tyrant to influence the drift of events that is bearing him on to his end. God’s judgments are often likened to a wind (see Isa 41:16; Wis. 4:4; 5:23). Neither hath he power in the day of death; rather, over the day of death. The second impossibility concerns the averting the hour of death. Whether it comes by sickness, or accident, or design, the despot must succumb; he can neither foresee nor ward it off (1Sa 26:10, “The Lord shall smite him; or his day shall come to die; or he shall go down into battle, and perish;” Ecclesiasticus 14:12, “Remember that death will not be long in coming, and that the covenant of the grave is not showed unto thee”). And there is no discharge in that war. The word rendered “discharge” (mishlachath) is found elsewhere only in Psa 78:49, where it is translated “sending,” “mission,” or “band.” The Septuagint here has ; the Vulgate Nec sinitur quiescere ingruente bello. The Authorized Version is doubtless correct, though there is no need to insert the pronoun “that.” The severity of the law of military service is considered analogously with the inexorable law of death. The Hebrew enactment (Deu 20:5-8) allowed exemption in certain cases; but the Persian rule was inflexibly rigid, permitting no furlough or evasion during an expedition. Thus we read that when (Eobazus, the father of three sons, petitioned Darius to leave him one at home, the tyrant replied that he would leave him all three, and had them put to death. Again, Pythius, a Lydian, asking Xerxes to exempt his eldest son from accompanying the army to Greece, was reviled by the monarch in unmeasured terms, and was punished for his presumption by seeing his son slain before his eyes, the body divided into two pieces, and placed on either side of the road by which the army passed, that all might be warned of the fate awaiting any attempt to evade military service (Herod; 4.84; 7.35). The passage in the text has a bearing on the authorship and date of our book, is as seems most probable, the reference is to the cruel discipline of Persia. This is the third impossibility; the fourth follows. Neither shall wickedness deliver those that are given to it; its lord and master. Septuagint, , “its votary.” Ginsburg translates resha “cunning;” but this seems foreign to the sentiment, which is concerned with the despot’s impiety, injustice, and general wickedness, not with the means by which he endeavors to escape the reward of his deeds. The fact is, no evil despot, however reckless and imperious, can go long unpunished. He may say in his heart, “There is no God,” or, “God hideth his face, and sees him not,” but certain retribution awaits him, and may not be avoided. Says the gnome
.
“Heaven drives the evil always unto judgment”
Ecc 8:9
All this have I seen (Ecc 5:18; Ecc 7:23); i.e. all that has been mentioned in the preceding eight verses, especially the conviction of retributive justice. He gained this experience by giving his mind to the consideration of men’s actions. There is a time wherein one man ruleth over another to his own hurt. This version is certainly incorrect. A new sentence is not commenced here, but the clause is closely connected with what precedes; and “his own hurt” should he “his [equivocally] hurt.” Thus Wright and Volck: “All this have I seen, even by applying my heart to all the work that is done under the sun, at a time when man ruleth over man to his hurt.” Most modern commentators consider that the hurt is that of the oppressed subject; but it is possible that the sense is intentionally ambiguous, and the injury may be that which the despot inflicts, and that which he has to suffer. Both these have been signified above. There is no valid reason for making, as Cox does, this last clause commence Ecc 8:10, and rendering, “But there is a time when a man ruleth over men to their hurt.”
Ecc 8:10-15
Section 6. Koheleth is troubled by apparent anomalies in God’s moral government. He notes the prosperity of the godless and the misery of the righteous, God’s abstention and the seeming impunity of sinners make men incredulous of Providence; but God is just in reward and punishment, as the end will prove. Meantime, returning to his old maxim, he advises men patiently to acquiesce in things as they are, and to make the best of life.
Ecc 8:10
And so (); then, in like manner, under the same circumstances (Est 4:16). The writer notes some apparent exceptions to the law of retribution of which he has just been speaking, the double particle at the beginning of the verse implying the connection with the preceding statement. I saw the wicked buried. “The wicked” are especially the despots (Ecc 8:9). These are carried to their graves with every outward honor and respect, like the rich man in the parable, who “died, and was buried” (Luk 16:22). Such men, if they had received their due reward, far from having a pompous and magnificent funeral (which would befit only a good and honored life), would have been buried with the burial of an ass (comp. Isa 14:19; Jer 22:19). So far the Authorized Version is undeniably correct. What follows is as certainly inaccurate as it is unintelligible. Who had come and gone from the place of the holy; literally, and they came, and from the place of the holy they went. The first verb seems to mean, “they came to their rest,” they died a natural death. The words, in themselves ambiguous, are explained by the connection in which they stand (comp. Isa 57:2). Wright renders, “they came into being,” and explains it with the following clause, “they went away from the holy place,” as one generation coming and another going, in constant succession. But if, as we suppose, the paragraph applies to the despot, such an interpretation is unsuitable. Cox’s idea, that oppressive despots “come again” in the persons of their wicked children, is wholly unsupported by the text. The verse admits and has received a dozen explanations differing more or less from one another. A good deal depends upon the manner in which the succeeding clause is translated, And they were forgotten in the city where they had so done. As the particle rendered “so” (ken) may also mean “well,” “rightly,” we get the rendering, “even such as acted justly,” and thus introduce a contrast between the fate of the wicked man who is honored with a sumptuous funeral, and that of the righteous whose name is cast out as pollution and soon forgotten. So Cheyne (‘Job and Solomon’) gives, “And in accordance with this I have seen ungodly men honored, and that too in the holy place (the temple, Isa 18:7), but those who had acted rightly had to depart, and were forgotten in the city.” Against this interpretation, which has been adopted by many, it may reasonably be urged that in the same verse ken would hardly be used in two different senses, and that there is nothing in the text to indicate a change of subject. It seems to me that the whole verse applies to the wicked man. He dies in peace, he leaves the holy place; the evil that he has done is forgotten in the very city where he had so done, i.e. done wickedly. “The place of the holy” is Jerusalem (Isa 48:2; Mat 27:53) or the temple (Mat 24:15). He is removed by death from that spot, the very name of which ought to have cried shame on his crimes and impiety. The expression seems to picture a great procession of priests and Levites accompanying the corpse of the deceased tyrant to the place of burial, while the final clause implies that no long lamentation was made over him, no monument erected to his memory (see the opposite of this in the treatment of Josiah, 2Ch 35:24, 2Ch 35:25). They who consider “the righteous ” to be the subject of the last clauses see in the words, “from the holy place they departed,” an intimation that these were excommunicated from the synagogue or temple, or banished from the promised land, on account of their opinions. I would translate the passage thus: In like manner have I seen the wicked buried, and they came to their rest, and they went from the holy place, and were forgotten in the city where they had so (wickedly) acted. The versions have followed various readings. Thus the Septuagint: “And then I saw the impious brought unto graves, and from the holy place; and they departed and were praised in the city, because they had so done;” Vulgate, “I have seen the impious buried, who also, while they still lived, were in the holy place, and were praised in the city as if men of just doings.” Commenting oh this version, St. Gregory writes, “The very tranquility of the peace of the Church conceals many under the Christian name who are beset with the plague of their own wickedness. But if a light breath of persecution strikes them, it sweeps them away at once as chaff from the threshing-floor. But some persons wish to bear the mark of Christian calling, because, since the name of Christ has been exalted on high, nearly all persons now look to appear faithful, and from seeing others called thus, they are ashamed not to seem faithful themselves; but they neglect to be that which they beast of being called. For they assume the reality of inward excellence, to adorn their outward appearance; and they who stand before the heavenly Judge, naked from the unbelief of their heart, are clothed, in the sight of men, with a holy profession, at least in words” (‘Moral.,’ 25:26). This is also vanity. The old refrain recurs to the writer as he thinks on the prosperity of the wicked, and the conclusions which infidels draw therefrom. Here is another example of the vanity that prevails in all earthly circumstances.
Ecc 8:11
The verse states one of the results of God’s forbearance in punishing the evil. Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily. The verse begins with asher, “because,” as in Ecc 4:3; Ecc 6:12, which connects the sentence with the allegation of vanity just preceding, as well as with what follows. Pithgam, “sentence,” “edict,” is a foreign word of Persian origin, found in Est 1:20 and in Chaldee portions of Ezra (Ezr 4:17) and Daniel (Dan 4:14, etc.). God seems to us to delay in punishing the guilty because we behold only one little portion of the course of his providence; could we take a more comprehensive view, anomalies would disappear, and we should see the end of these men (Psa 73:17). But a contracted, skeptical view leads to two evilsfirst, a weakening of faith in God’s moral government; and second, a miserable fatalism which denies man’s responsibility and saps his energy. Of the former of these results Koheleth here treats. Therefore the heart of the sons of men. The heart is named as the seat of thought and the prime mover of action (comp. Ecc 9:3; Est 7:5; Mat 15:18, Mat 15:19). Is fully set in them to do evil; literally, is full in them; i.e. their heart becomes filled with thoughts which are directed to evil, or full of courage, hence “emboldened” to do evil. Vulgate, absque timore ullo filii hominum perpetrant mala; Septuagint, “Because there is no contradiction () made on the part of () those who do evil speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully persuaded () in them to do evil.” The long-suffering of God, instead of leading such men to repentance, hardens them in their infidelity (Psa 73:11). Primarily, the reference is still to tyrannical despots, who, in their seeming impunity, are em-boldened to pursue their evil course. But the statement is true generally. As Cicero says, “Quis ignorat maximam illecebram esse peccandi impunitatis spem?” (‘Pro Milone,’ 16.).
Ecc 8:12
Though a sinner do evil a hundred times. The sentence begins again, as Ecc 8:11, with asher, followed by a participle; and the conjunction ought to be rendered “because,” the statement made in the former verse being resumed and strengthened. The Vulgate has attamen, which our version follows. The Septuagint goes astray, translating, , “He that has sinned has done evil from that time.” The sinner is here supposed to have transgressed continually without cheek or punishment. The expression, “a hundred times,” is used indefinitely, as Pro 17:10; Isa 65:20. And his days be prolonged; better, prolongeth his days for it; i.e. in the practice of evil, with a kind of contentment and satisfaction, the pronoun being the ethic dative. Contrary to the usual course of temporal retribution, the sinner often lives to old age The Vulgate has, Et per patientiam sustentatur, which signifies that he is kept in life by God’s long-suffering. Ginsburg gives, “and is perpetuated,” i.e. in his progenywhich is a possible, but not a probable, rendering. Yet surely I know; rather, though I for my part know. He has seen sinners prosper; this experience has been forced upon him; yet he holds an inward conviction that God’s moral government will vindicate itself at some time and in some signal manner. It shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him. This is not really tautological; it is compared to St. Paul’s expression (1Ti 5:3), “widows that are widows indeed” (), implying that they are, in fact and life, what they profess to be. Delitzsch and Plumptre suggest that in Koheleth’s time “God-fearers” had become the name of a religious class, as the Chasidim, or “Assideaus,” in 1 Macc. 2:42; 7:13, etc. Certainly a trace of this so-named party is seen in Psa 118:4; Ma 3:16. When this adjustment of anomalies shall take place, whether in this life or in another, the writer says not here. In spite of all contrary appearances, he holds firm to his faith that it will be welt with the righteous in the long run. The comfort and peace of a conscience at rest, and the inward feeling that his life was ordered after God’s will, would compensate a good man for much outward trouble; and if to this was added the assured hope of another life, it might indeed be said that it was well with him. The Septuagint has, “that they may fear before him,” which implies that the mercy and loving-kindness of God, manifested in his care of the righteous, lead to piety and true religion. Cheyne (‘Job and Solomon’), combining this verse with the next, produces a sense which is certainly not in the present Hebrew text, “For I know that it ever happens that a sinner does evil for a long time, and yet lives long, whilst he who fears before God is short-lived as a shadow.”
Ecc 8:13
But it shall not be well with the wicked. If experience seemed often to militate against this assertion, Koheleth’s faith prevailed against apparent contradictions. Neither shall he prolong his days, which are as a shadow. Above we read of a wicked man enjoying a long, untroubled life; here the contrary is stated. Such contradictions are seen every day. There are inscrutable reasons for the delay of judgment; but on the whole moral government is vindicated, and even the long life of a sinner is no blessing. The author of the Book of Wisdom writes (Wis. 4:8), “Honorable age is not that which standeth in length of time, nor that is measured by number of years;” and Isaiah (Isa 65:20), “The sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.” Man’s life is compared to a shadow because it passes away with the setting sun (see on Ecc 6:12). The Vulgate, in order to obviate the apparent discrepancy between this and the preceding verses, renders the verb in a precatory form: Non sit bonum impio, etc; “Let it not be well with the wicked, and let his days not be prolonged; but let them pass away as a shadow who fear not the Lord.” This is quite unnecessary; and the words, “as a shadow,” according to the accents, belong to what precedes, as in the Authorized Version. Hitzig and others have adopted the Vulgate division, and render, “Like a shadow is he who fears not God.” But there is no sufficient reason for disregarding the existing accentuation. Septuagint, “He shall not prolong his days in a shadow ( ).” Because he feareth not before God. This is the reason, looking to temporal retribution, why the wicked shall not live out half their days (Ecc 7:17; Pro 10:27; Psa 55:23). Koheleth cleaves to the doctrine received from old time, although facts seem often to contradict it.
Ecc 8:14
There is a vanity which is done upon the earth. The vanity is named in what follows, viz. the seeming injustice it, the distribution of good and evil. There be just men, unto whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked (comp. Ecc 8:10; Ecc 3:16). The melancholy fact is noted that the righteous often experience that fate with which the wicked ,are threatened, which their conduct might be expected to bring upon them. The verb translated “happeneth” (naga), with el, “to come to,” “strike against,” is thus used only in later Hebrew, e.g. Est 9:26. According to the work of the righteous. The wicked meet with that outward prosperity and success which were thought to be the special reward of those who served God. The Vulgate is explanatory, “There are just men whom evils befall as if they did the works of the wicked; and there are wicked men who are as free from care as if they had the deeds of the just.” Commenting on Job 34:10, Job 34:11, St. Gregory writes, “It is by no means always the case in this life that God renders to each man according to his work and according to his own ways. For both many who commit unlawful and wicked deeds he prevents of his free grace, and converts to works of holiness; and some who are devoted to good deeds he reproves by means of the scourge, and so afflicts those who please him, as though they were displeasing to him . God doubtless so ordains it of his inestimable mercy, that both scourges should torture the just, lest their doings should elate them, and that the unjust should pass this life at least without punishment, because by their evil doings they are hastening onwards to those torments which are without end. For that the just are sometimes scourged in no way according to their deserts is shown by this history of Job. Elihu, therefore, would speak more truly it’ he had said that there is not unmercifulness and iniquity in God, even when he seems not to render to men according to their ways. For even that which we do lint understand is brought forth from the righteous balance of secret judgment” (‘Moral.,’ 24:44). Koheleth ends by repeating his melancholy refrain, I said that this also (indeed) is vanity. This conclusion, however, does not lead to despair or infidelity.
Ecc 8:15
Then (and) I commended mirth. In face of the anomalies which meet us in our view of life, Koheleth recommends the calm enjoyment of such blessings and comforts as we possess, in exact accordance with what has already been said (Ecc 2:24; Ecc 3:12, Ecc 3:22; Ecc 5:18), though the road by which he arrives at the conclusion is not identical in both cases. In the earlier chapters the injunction is based on man’s inability to be the master of his own fate; in the present passage the inscrutable nature of the law that directs God’s moral government leads to the advice to make the best of circumstances. In neither instance need we trace veiled Epicureanism. The result obtained is reached by acute observation supplemented by faith in God. Under the sun. The phrase occurs twice in this verse and again in Ecc 8:17, and implies that the view taken was limited to man’s earthly existence. To eat, and to drink, etc. This is not a commendation of a greedy, voluptuous life, but an injunction thankfully to enjoy the good provided by God without disquieting one’s self with the mysteries of Providence. So it was said of Israel in its palmy days (1Ki 4:20), “Judah and Israel were many, as the sand which is by the sea in multitude, eating and drinking, and making merry.” For that shall abide with him of his labor; rather, and that this should accompany him in his labor. The Greek Version regards the verb as indicative, not subjunctive, nor, as others, as jussive: “This shall attend () him in his work.” But it seems better to consider Koheleth as saying that the happiest thing for a man is to make the best of what he has, and to take with him in all his work a cheerful and contented heart.
Ecc 8:16
Ec 8:16-9:10.Section 7 (the division in the theme caused by the introduction of a new chapter is misleading). Man’s wisdom is incapable of explaining the course of God’s providential government; death awaits all without any exception, whatever be their condition or actions. These two considerations conduce to the old conclusion, that man had best enjoy life, only being careful to use it energetically and well.
Ecc 8:16, Ecc 8:17
No mortal wisdom, combined with the closest observation and thought, can fathom the mysteries of God’s moral government.
Est 8:16
When I applied mine heart (Ecc 1:13). The answering member of the sentence is in Est 8:17, the last clause of the present verse being parenthetical. To know wisdom. This was his first study (see on Ecc 1:16). He endeavored to acquire wisdom which might enable him to investigate God’s doings. His second study was to see the business that is done upon the earth; i.e. not only to learn what men do in their several stations and callings, but likewise to understand what all this means, what it tends to, its object and result. (For “business,” inyan, see on Ecc 1:13.) The Vulgate here renders it distentionem, “distraction,” which is like the Septuagint . For also there is that neither day nor night seeth sleep with his eyes. This is a parenthetical clause expressing either the restless, unrelieved labor that goes on in the world, or the sleepless meditation of one who tries to solve the problem of the order and disorder in men’s lives. In the latter case, Koheleth may be giving his own experience. To “see sleep” is to enjoy sleep. The phrase is not found elsewhere in the Old Testament, but commentators quote parallels from classical sources. Thus Terence, ‘Heautontim.,’ 3.1.82
“Somnum hercle ego hac nocte cculis non vidi reels.”
“No sleep mine eyes have seen this livelong night.”
Cicero, ‘Ad Famil.,’ 8.30, “Fuit mittflea vigilantia, qui tote sue consulatuson, hum non vidit.” Of course, the expression is hyperbolical. The same idea is found without metaphor in such passages as Psa 132:4; Pro 6:4.
Ecc 8:17
Then I beheld all the work of God. This is the apodosis to the first clause of Ecc 8:16. “God’s work” is the same as the work that is done under the sun, and means men’s actions and the providential ordering thereof. This a man, with his finite understanding, cannot find out, cannot thoroughly comprehend or explain (comp. Ecc 3:11; Ecc 7:23, Ecc 7:24). Because though a man labor to seek it out. The Septuagint has, , “Whatsoever things a man shall labor to seek;” Vulgate, Quanto plus laboraverit ad quaerendum, tanto minus inveniat. The interpreters waver between “how much so ever,” and “wherefore a man labors.” The latter seems to be best. Though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not be able to find it. It is the part of wisdom to determine to know all that can be known; but the resolution is baffled here (comp. Ecc 7:23). The two verses, with their repetitions and tautologous expressions, seem to denote perturbation of mind in the author and his sense of the gravity of his assertions. He is overwhelmed with the thought of the inscrutability of God’s judgments, while he is forced to face the facts. An exquisite commentary on this passage is found in Hooker, ‘Eccl. Pol.,’ 1.2. 2, quoted by Plumptre; and in Bishop Butler’s sermon ‘On the Ignorance of Man,’ where we read, “From it [the knowledge of our ignorance] we may learn with what temper of mind a man ought to inquire into the subject of religion, namely, with what expectation of finding difficulties, and with a disposition to take up and rest satisfied with any evidence whatever which is real. A man should beforehand expect things mysterious, and such as he will not be able thoroughly to comprehend or go to the bottom of . Our ignorance is the proper answer to many things which are called objections against religion, particularly to those which arise from the appearance of evil and irregularity in the constitution of nature and the government of the world Since the constitution of nature and the methods and designs of Providence in the government of the world are above our comprehension, we should acquiesce in and rest satisfied with our ignorance, turn our thoughts from that which is above and beyond us, and apply ourselves to that which is level to our capacities, and which is our real business and concern . Lastly, let us adore that infinite wisdom and power and goodness which is above our comprehension (Ecclesiasticus 1:6).
The conclusion is that in all lowliness of mind we set lightly by ourselves; that we form our temper to an implicit submission to the Divine Majesty, beget within ourselves an absolute resignation to all the methods of his providence in his dealings with the children of men; that in the deepest humility of our souls we prostrate ourselves before him, and join in that celestial song, ‘Great and marvelous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy Name?’ (Rev 15:3, Rev 15:4) (comp. Rom 11:33).
HOMILETICS
Est 8:1
A wise man’s superiority-in what does it consist?
I. IN PENETRATION OF INTELLECT. He knoweth not merely things, but the interpretation thereof. Among the Chaldeans the interpretation of dreams was a special branch of wisdom professed by magicians and astrologers (Dan 2:4-13). A wise manusing the term in its widest sensehas clearer insight than ordinary mortals into the essences of things. To him pertains the faculty of searching into and discovering the causes of events. In particular he has insight into:
1. The secrets of nature. He is qualified to understand and explain phenomena which to ordinary minds are mysterious and inscrutable.
2. The events of history. He is able frequently to trace the under-currents moving society, and bringing about occurrences which to common minds are inexplicable.
3. The wonders of revelation. He can discover in sacred Scripture truths veiled to unenlightened eyes.
4. The mysteries of grace. Possessed of an unction from the Holy One, he can understand all things (1Jn 2:20, 1Jn 2:27).
II. IN ELEVATION OF CHARACTER. “A man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine.” “It scarcely needs a proof that the countenance or front of the head is regarded in Scripture as the mirror of Divine influences upon the manof all affections, and of the entire life of soul and spirit.” “In the physiognomy is reflected the moral condition of the man”. “Many a poet, and seer, and martyr, and reformer, and woman of the finest fiber has at times had a face that has looked like porcelain with a light behind it”. The wise man’s face shines because of three things:
1. The light of truth in his understanding. The wise man is essentially a child of light. A luminous intellect makes a radiant countenance.
2. The light of purity in his heart. There are faces which glow and beam with a soft silver sheen, as it’ they had shed off all that was gross and material, animal and brutish, and were spiritualized into a fine ethereal essence; because they reflect upon their surface the pure, sweet, chaste, and holy emotions that stir the clear depths of their bosoms within.
3. The light of life in his conscience. In the wise man the moral faculty is not dead, torpid, dull, and besotted; but alive, bright, sensitive, and vigorous; and what Cook calls the solar look in a face “arises from the activity of the higher nature when conscience is supreme”.
III. IN REFINEMENT OF MANNERS. “The hardness,” or strength, “of a wise man’s face is changed.” “The coarse ferocity of ignorance” is in him “transformed by culture” (Plumptre). What Ovid says of human learningit.
“Makes manners gentle, rescues men from strife”
is true of heavenly wisdom, which is “first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated,” etc. (Jas 3:17). “Wisdom gives to a man bright eyes, a gentle countenance, a noble expression; it refines and dignifies his external appearance and his demeanor; the hitherto rude external, and the rude regardless, selfish, and bold deportment, are changed into their contraries” (Delitzsch). The change may be:
1. Gradual, as all moral transformations are slow, “from stage to stage,” “first the blade and then the ear, and after that the full corn in the ear;” but it must be:
2. Actual, otherwise there is no reason to suppose the individual has become possessed of wisdom; and it will eventually be:
3. Visible to all, so that all beholding him shall recognize in him the gentleness of one who has studied in wisdom’s school. Christ, in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Col 2:3), was the highest impersonation the world ever witnessed of true gentleness and refinement.
Est 8:2-6
Honor the king.
I. THE SUBJECT‘S DUTY TOWARDS THE KING.
1. To keep the king’s command. Unless conscience interposes with a clear and distinct veto, as in the cases of Moses’ parents (Heb 11:23), Daniel and his companions in Babylon (Ecc 1:8; Ecc 3:16-18; Ecc 6:10), and the apostles before the Sanhedrin (Act 4:19, Act 4:20), it is the duty of all to render obedience to the civil power, kingly or magisterial, even though the doing of this should entail suffering and hardship (Rom 13:1-7; Tit 3:1; 1Pe 2:13-15).
2. To abide in the king’s service. The subject should not be hasty “to go out of the king’s presence,” in the sense of either renouncing allegiance to the king’s throne, or deserting the post of duty he has received from the king. The obligation to preserve one’s loyalty, however, is not absolute. Times may come when insurrection is a duty, as in the revolution which overthrew Athaliah (2Ch 23:15; 2Ki 11:16). Nor can it be maintained that statesmen should never desert their sovereigns. When these embark on projects the consciences of their ministers cannot approve, it is incumbent on these ministers to leave them. Only nations should not resort to revolutionary practices without due consideration, and statesmen should not resign their portfolios in a fit of haste.
3. To preserve the king’s favor. This the subject will usually do, if he “persist not in an evil thing,” i.e. if he take no part in conspiracies against the king’s power or person; as he certainly will lose the king’s favor by acting otherwise.
II. THE GROUNDS ON WHICH THE SUBJECT‘S DUTY RESTS.
1. The sanctions of religion. These as much bind the subject as if the subject had individually sworn an oath in God’s presence. The relationship existing between king and people being of Divine appointment, the subject is practically bound as by a solemn covenant in God’s sight to render obedience and loyalty to his sovereign (cf. 2Ch 23:16; 2Ch 36:13). Nor does religion exempt the subject from such obligation even when the king is unworthy and his rule oppressive (Jer 29:7; Mat 22:21).
2. The power of the king. This also a reason why the subject should not raise the standard of rebellion without just cause, or offer unreasonable resistance to the carrying out of royal commands, that the king, as representative of the supreme power of the state, is usually able to enforce obedience and loyalty at least of an external kind. “The king doeth whatsoever pleaseth him,” etc. (verses 3, 4). The language applies to Oriental despots more than to constitutional monarchs.
3. The safety of the subject. Under arbitrary rule such as the Preacher alluded to, the way of submission was the way of safety. It might not, indeed, promise much good to the individual quietly to submit to a power he could not resist; but at least it would largely protect him against evil. Ideal rulers should be a fountain of blessing to their loyal as well as a force of repression to their disloyal subjects (Rom 13:3).
4. The dictates of wisdom. The subject who might feel impelled to rebellion and disobedience perceives that, as “to every purpose there is a time and judgment”, since otherwise man’s misery beneath the whips and scorns of time would become intolerable, so the oppression under which he groans will one day exhaust itself, come to an end, and be called up for judgment at the bar of the Supreme, if not in time and on earth, at least at the world’s close, and in the unseen; and, perceiving this, the wise subject deems it better to keep the king’s commandment, and maintain allegiance to the king’s throne, than to enter on the dubious paths of insurrection and revolt.
Learn:
1. The superior honor due from man to him who is the King of kings.
2. The loftier grounds on which the Christian soul’s allegiance to God and Jesus Christ is claimed.
3. The blessedness of those who are faithful subjects of the heavenly King.
4. The folly of attempting to elude God’s presence, and the danger of persisting in an evil thing.
5. The high argument for patience supplied by the certain prospect of a future judgment.
Est 8:7-9
The sorrowful tale of man’s misery upon the earth.
I. NO KNOWLEDGE OF THE FUTURE. Neither himself can foresee, nor can any one inform him, either what shall be or how it shall be. Man’s acquaintance with the future amounts at best to a “perhaps.”
II. NO EXEMPTION FROM DEATH. This great truth stated in a threefold form.
1. No man can retain his spirit, or hold it back, when the hour strikes for it to be breathed forth, any more than he can hold back the winds of heaven when the moment has arrived for them to blow.
2. No man has power over the day of his dearly, to defer it, to remove it to a dim and distant future, or to hasten it to bring it near, any more than he has power over the day of his birth. His times both of coming into and of going out from the world are in God’s hand.
3. No man can procure a discharge from the war with the king of terrors, either for himself or another, any more than a conscript could escape the battle when drawn for service by an Oriental despot. All without exception must go forth to the final conflict (Heb 9:27).
III. NO ESCAPE FROM RETRIBUTION. The wicked may hope that in some way or other it may be possible for them to evade the due reward of their transgressions; but such hope is taken from them by the fact that God will one day bring every secret thing into judgment, whether it has been good, or whether it has been evil (Ecc 12:14).
IV. NO IMMUNITY FROM OPPRESSION. Though it cannot be affirmed that all are oppressedelse where were the oppressors?yet it cannot be guaranteed beforehand that any one will not be oppressed, since “there is a time wherein one man hath power over another to his hurt” (Est 8:9).
LESSONS.
1. Leave the future with God, and live in the present.
2. Prepare for that day which will come on all like a thief in the night.
3. So live that the recompense of the future will be that which belongs to righteousness.
4. Avoid being an oppressor, and rather be oppressed.
Est 8:10
Before, at, and after death; or, the wicked and the good-a contrast.
I. BEFORE DEATH. In the character of their lives. Each lives and acts in accordance with his character of soul.
1. The wicked acts wickedly. Spends his days
(1) without religion, having no fear of God before his eyes (Psa 36:1; Rom 3:18);
(2) without morality, taking pleasure in disobedience to God’s Law (Eph 2:2; Eph 5:6);
(3) and without hope (Eph 2:12), having no happy outlook beyond the grave.
2. The righteous acts rightly.
(1) Worshipping in the temple of the holy;
(2) learning in the school of the holy;
(3) walking in the ways of the holy; and
(4) cherishing the hopes of the holy. These different characteristics belong to the wicked and the righteous in all ranks and classes of society.
II. AT DEATH. In the style of their funerals. Both come to the grave, the house appointed for all the living (Job 30:23), like Dives and Lazarus (Luk 16:22); perhaps after having lived respectively as these didthe wicked clothing themselves in fine linen and faring sumptuously every day; the good lying in rags and sores at the rich man’s gate, and feeding on the crumbs from the rich man’s table. But from this point their paths and experiences diverge.
1. The wicked have a burial. They are borne to the place of sepulture with pomp and pageantry, and in presence of assembled crowds are committed to the dust. Wealth and honor wait upon them to their last resting-places, and do the utmost to provide quiet and peaceful couches for their lifeless corpses. Oftentimes, if not always, is this the fortune of the ungodly who have defied the Almighty, despised religion, insulted morality, and yet increased in riches and grown great in power.
2. The good simply go away. They vanish from the scene of their sufferings and labors, no one knows when or how. Whether they nave a funeral no one cares. Certainly their departure is not marked by long trains of mourners going about the streets. Their obsequies, conducted by angels, are not observed by the passing crowds of busy men on earth. This also is a frequent lot of good men at death, though it must not be assumed that good men are never carried to their graves amid lamentations and tears (2Ch 24:16; Act 8:2).
III. AFTER DEATH. In the treatment of their memories. Both pass into the unseen, and have no more knowledge of what transpires on this side the veil. But their lots upon the other side are frequently as different from each other as before.
1. The wicked are remembered. Forgotten, it may be, and forsaken by God, but not by men who admired their splendor, and perhaps envied or feared their greatness when living.
2. The good are forgotten. Remembered indeed by God, but not by men, who suffer their names to pass into oblivion; as saith the poet
“The evil that men do lives after them;
The good is oft interred with their bones.”
(‘Julius Caesar,’ act 3. sc. 2.)
LESSONS.
1. Study to live well by acting well.
2. Seek a lodging for thy soul when it must leave thy body.
3. Commit the care of thy memory to God and good men.
4. Envy neither the present nor the future lot of the wicked.
Est 8:11-13
Solemn thoughts for serious moments.
I. A GREAT DISTINCTION IN THE CHARACTERS OF MEN. Between the righteous and the wicked (Ma 3:18), the sinner and the saint, the man that fears God and the soul that fears him not. This distinction eclipses all others. Other distinctions affect the externals, this the essentials of man’s being. The fear of God the root of all goodness in the soul (Psa 111:10).
II. A GREAT FACT IN THE DIVINE ADMINISTRATION. That sentence is already pronounced (Eze 18:4), and will eventually be executed (unless intercepted by grace) on every evil work (Psa 11:6; Psa 34:21; Rom 1:18; Rom 5:12; Rom 6:21, Rom 6:23; Jas 1:15). A sermon on the certainty of future judgment. The principle of the Divine government is one of moral retribution. To each man according as his work shall beevil to the evil, good to the good.
III. A GREAT DISPLAY OF DIVINE CLEMENCY. Though pronounced, yet is sentence not executed against every evil work. Sometimes in God’s providence retribution follows swiftly upon the heels of crime. For the most part, however, the infliction of the sentence is deferredto give the sinner space to repent, to reveal to him the greatness of his guilt, and to melt him by a personal experience of undeserved kindness. “Account the long-suffering of our God salvation” (2Pe 3:15).
IV. A GREAT INSTANCE OF HUMAN IMPIETY. “Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.” The abuse of clemency a sadder sign of depravity than the violation of commandment; to trample on God’s mercy a greater wickedness than to break his Law.
V. A GREAT DIVERGENCE IN INDIVIDUAL EXPERIENCE. Between that of the long-lived and deeply-dyed sinner who defies the Divine Law and despises the Divine mercy, and that of the good man and humble who fears God and walks in his commandments and ordinances. The former, in spite of all his shameless audacity and boundless impiety, attains not to real happiness”it shall not be well with the wicked,” either here or hereafter (Isa 3:11). The former, notwithstanding his depressed condition, and perhaps brief life, is possessed of the secret of inward felicity”it shall be well with them that fear God,” both in this world and the next (Isa 3:10; 1Ti 4:8).
Est 8:14, Est 8:15
A misunderstood providence and a mistaken judgment.
I. THE MISUNDERSTOOD PROVIDENCE.
1. The providence is undeniable. “There be righteous men, unto whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked;” and “there be wicked men, to whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous.” Of the former, Joseph, David, Job, Asaph, and Jeremiah were examples; as also the apostles and early Christians, the martyrs and confessors of the New Testament Church. Of the latter, Noah’s sons, who, though not themselves righteous, were saved in the ark; Pharaoh’s butler, who, though guilty of having conspired against the king’s life, was nevertheless spared; Haman, who for a time at least flourished, though he was essentially a bad manbesides othersmay be cited as examples.
2. The providence is inevitable. The constitution of the world being what it is, and the human family interlaced and interdependent as it is, it is impossible but that calamities should sometimes fall upon the righteous, and blessings descend upon the heads of the wicked, and that occasionally even wicked men should be deliberately treated as if they were righteous, and righteous men rewarded as if they were wicked. Good men often suffer the consequences of other people’s evil deeds, and vice versa bad men reap the benefits of other people’s good works.
3. The providence is mysterious. That such things should occur in a world presided over by an all-wise and all-powerful as well as holy and just God, who loves righteousness and. hates iniquity, is undoubtedly “hard to be understood,” and for the full solution of the enigma it is more than likely the clearer light of the future must be awaited.
4. The providence is symbolic. At least it has its counterpart in the spiritual worldin the experience of Christ the Righteous One, who was numbered with transgressors (Mar 15:28), and made sin for us, though he knew no sin (2Co 5:21); and in that of believers, who, though personally sinful and unrighteous, are yet accepted as righteous in God’s sight, and treated as such on account of the righteousness of Christ (Rom 3:25, Rom 3:26; 1Co 1:30; 2Co 5:21; Eph 1:6). May this not in part explain the occurrence of such phenomena in actual life? Nevertheless, it often happens that:
5. The providence is misunderstood. Men because of it rush to conclusions that cannot be sustainedas e.g. that there is no such thing as a providential government of the world, that the Supreme Being is indifferent to moral distinctions, that there is no profit in piety, and that no disadvantage follows on the practice of wickedness, and the like.
II. THE MISTAKEN JUDGMENT.
1. The judgment is wrong. It may not be wrong to affirm that a man, more especially if good and wise, should eat, drink, and be merry (Ecc 9:7), though such as do so are not always either good or wise (Luk 12:19); but it certainly is not right to say that a man has nothing better to do under the sun than to eat, drink, and be merry. He who thinks so must have a low conception of both the nature and the destiny of man.
2. The reason is doubtful. That mirth will abide with a man in his labor all the days of his life. One fears this cannot be sustained as in perfect accord with experience. Inward happiness or joy in God may abide with a soul through every varying phase of external circumstances; it is not clear that so outward a thing as mirth, hilarity, satisfaction in creature-comforts, will abide with any to the close of life.
Learn:
1. To trust God even in the darkest and most mysterious providences.
2. To rejoice in God rather than in any of his creatures.
Est 8:16, Est 8:17
The business float is done upon the cattle.
I. IN ITS RELATION TO GOD. It is his work.
1. As to its plan.” He doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth” (Dan 4:35). “He worketh all things after the counsel of his will” (Eph 1:11).
2. As to its execution. Not directly, but indirectlyit being in him that men live and move and have their being (Act 17:28). Not so that he is the Author of sin, or that in any way the freedom and efficiency of second causes are taken away; but so that while man freely acts and carries out his purposes, God also as freely acts in and through man and carries out his.
3. As to its characteristics. It is unsearchable and past finding out. As God’s thoughts are deep, his works are vast and his ways inscrutable (Psa 77:19; Rom 11:33).
II. Is ITS RELATION TO MAN. It is man’s work also, he being the immediate agent engaged in its performance; and as such it is:
1. Incessant. It goes on day and nightwork, work, work.
2. Laborious. So much so that multitudes are able to see sleep with their eyes neither day nor night.
3. Disappointing. Man labors on, and not only often makes little of his toil, but never comes to a clear perception of what the garment is he and others are weaving upon the loom of time.
LESSONS.
1. The duty of each man performing his appointed task with fidelity, leaving the ultimate issue in the hands of God.
2. The wisdom of recognizing that the business done upon the earth is after all only a means toward an end.
3. The greater propriety of laboring for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life.
4. The limited extent of man’s knowledge as to God’s plan in the government of the world
HOMILIES BY D. THOMAS
Est 8:1
The tokens of wisdom.
This book, and those which have affinity with it, both canonical and apocryphal, are in nothing more remarkable than in the stress they lay upon wisdom. This is the quality of the spirit which in its highest manifestation is godliness and piety, which in its ordinary manifestations distinguishes the ruler from the subject, the sage from the fool. The reader of Ecclesiastes cannot fail to admire the independence of the author of common human standards of well-being, such as wealth, prosperity, and pleasure; wisdom is with him “the principal thing.” The signs of true wisdom are graphically portrayed in this verse.
I. WISDOM IMPARTS INSIGHT. Ordinary men are not even, as a rule, observant; but there are men who are observant of what strikes the senses, of the phenomena of nature, of external life, but who go no further. Now, it is characteristic of the wise that they are not satisfied to know what lies upon the surface. The first stage of wisdom is science; the scientific man notes resemblances and differences, antecedents and sequences; he arranges phenomena into classes and species and genera upon the one principle, and into physical causes and effects upon the other. He recognizes similarities and uniformities in nature, and terms these arrangements laws. The second stage of wisdom is philosophy, whose province it is not only to proceed to higher generalizations, but to discover in all the processes of nature and in all the activities of mind the presence and operation of reason. The third stage of wisdom is theology, or religion, i.e. the discernment of the ubiquitous presence in the universe of the Eternal Spirit, from whom all individual minds proceed, and whose language, by which he holds communion with those minds, is nature. The scientist, the philosopher, the theologian, are all men who possess wisdom, who are dissatisfied with superficial knowledge, who “know the interpretation of a thing.” Their wisdom is limited indeed if they disparage one another’s work and service, for the world has need of them all. And there is no occasion why, in a measure, one man should not partake all three characters.
II. WISDOM IMPARTS BRIGHTNESS. The stupid and brutal betray themselves by an expression of stolidity. The cunning and crafty often display their characteristic quality by a keen, designing, “underhand,” and sinister glance. But the wise are bright; clearness of perception, width of judgment, decisiveness of purpose, seem written upon the brow, seem to gleam from the steady eye of the wise man. The entrance of a wise man into the council-chamber is like the rising of the sun upon a landscape,when the mists are cleared away and the dark places are illumined.
III. WISDOM IMPARTS STRENGTH, BOLDNESS, CONFIDENCE. The wise man is prepared for difficulties and dangers, and because he is prepared he is not alarmed. He measures circumstances, and sees how they may be bent to his will, how their threats may be turned into favor. He measures his fellow-men, discerns the strength of the strong, the depth of the thoughtful, the trustworthiness of the firm, the incompetency of the pretender, and the worthlessness of the shifty. He measures himself, and neither exaggerates or underestimates his abilities and his resources. Hence the boldness, the hardness of his face, when he turns to survey his task, to encounter his adversary, to endure his test. His heart is not dismayed, for his trust is ever in his God and Savior.T.
Est 8:2-5
The ruler and the subject.
It is possible that some persons, living under a form of government very different from that presumed in the admonitions of this passageunder a limited monarchy or a republic instead of under an absolute monarchy of a special theocratic kindmay fancy that these verses have no special significance for them, no applicability to the practical conduct of their actual life. But reflection may show us that this is not so, that there are valuable principles of interest and import for the civil life of all men.
I. CIVIL AUTHORITY IS IN ITSELF OF DIVINE ORIGIN, AND POSSESSES DIVINE SANCTIONS. The king, the king’s word, commandment, and pleasure, are all significant of order in society, of that great reality and power in human affairsthe state. “Order is Heaven’s first law.” Right does not, indeed, grow out of civil authority, but it is its Divine basis. That kingship has often become tyranny, and democracy mob-rule, that every form of government may be abused, is known to every student of history, to every reader of the newspapers. But law in itself is good, and its maintenance is the only security for public liberty. One of the first duties of a religious teacher is to impress upon the people the sacredness of civil authority, to inculcate reverence for law, to encourage to good citizenship. He is not called upon to flatter the great and powerful, to repress discussion, to enjoin servility. But that freedom which is the condition of the true development of national life, and which can only be preserved by reverence for rightful authority, for constitutional government, should be dear to every Christian, and should be held in honor by every Christian teacher and preacher. “The powers that be are ordained of God.”
II. WISE PATRIOTISM LEADS TO CHEERFUL OBEDIENCE AND SUBMISSION TO AUTHORITY. Law for the most part is designed to repress crime, to maintain peace and tranquility, to afford protection to the honest, industrious, and law-abiding. Therefore to commit wrong of any kind, whether theft, or slander, or violence, is both evil in itself and is transgression of the law. A man who simply contents himself with breaking no civil law may indeed be a villain, for civil law is not all; there is a Divine Law which the civil ruler is not bound to enforce. But the bad citizen cannot be a good Christian; to break the laws of the state is not likely to lead to obedience to the commandments of the King of kings. It is, indeed, not to be expected that a man should approve of every command of the king, of every law which is enforced in his country. But if every man were to refuse to obey every statute of which he disapproved, how could government be carried on? The wonderful word of Christ is decisive, “Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s.” Where no Divine ordinance is violated by conforming to civil law, the duty of the subject, the citizen, is plain; be should obey. He is, of course, at liberty under a constitutional government to use means of an honorable kind to secure a change of law. It is a grand word of the Preacher, “Whoso keepeth the commandment shall know no evil thing.”
III. LOYALTY TO EARTHLY, HUMAN AUTHORITY IS SUGGESTIVE OF LOYALTY TO GOD. When submission is enjoined, it is supported by a religious motive”and that in regard of the oath of God.” It is evident that the authority of a parent or a ruler, the subjection of a child or a citizen, are intended to symbolize the even higher facts of the spiritual kingdomthe empire of the “King, eternal, immortal, and invisible,” and the loyalty of those who by the new birth have entered “the kingdom of heaven.”T.
Est 8:11
A hasty and foolish inference.
In the case of some this conclusion may be reached deliberately, but in that of others the process may be unconscious, or at all events without attentive consideration and reasoned purpose.
I. THE DATA. There is delay in retribution. When we perceive immediate punishment follow upon flagrant sin, we are surprised and startled. We often remark that the course of the wrongdoer who avoids collision with the civil government is a course of uninterrupted prosperity. We see families advanced to honor and wealth who are lacking in moral character. We read of nations persevering for years, and even for centuries, in paths of injustice, rapacity, and violence, and yet growing in power and acquiring renown. And we cannot doubt that many evil deeds wrought in secret remain unpunished. The facts must be admitted. But they are explicable, and may be reconciled with a firm belief in the righteous retribution, the perfect moral government, of God. Stress is to be laid upon the word “speedily.” It must be remembered that with God “one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years are as one day.”
“Though the mills of God grind slowly, yet they grind exceeding small;
Though with patience he stands waiting, he exactly judgeth all.”
Judgment deferred is not judgment abandoned. From the time of Job the facts here referred to have been a perplexity to the observer of human society.
II. THE ERRONEOUS INFERENCE. “The heart of the sons of men is fully set in them [is emboldened] to do evil.” The supposition is that sin may be committed with impunity, and the conclusion is that those sins which yield pleasure should be committed, since they will entail upon the sinner no evil consequences. Of course, an upright, conscientious, and godly man does not reason thus. He does what is right from a conviction of the nobility and beauty of goodness, and from a desire to act in conformity with the will of God, and to enjoy the approval of God; he abstains from evil because his conscience condemns it, because it is contrary to the universal order, because it is a grief to his Savior’s heart. But the self-seeking, pleasure-loving, base mind looks only to the consequences of actions, and does what affords pleasure, and evades painful duty. It is such a man who is referred to in ‘this passage, whose heart is emboldened to sin by the foolish persuasion that no penalty will follow.
III. THE PRACTICAL LESSONS.
1. The sinner should reflect upon the facts of the Divine government, and upon the express statements of the revealed Word of God. He may thence learn the certainty of retribution. “The wicked shall not go unpunished;” “The way of transgressors is hard;” “The wages of sin is death.” The sentence may not be executed speedily; but it is passed, and it will in God’s time be carried out.
2. The godly man should rest assured that, however he may be perplexed by the mysteries of Divine providence, however he may be unable to reconcile what he sees in society with his religious convictions, nevertheless the Lord reigneth, and it shall be well with those who fear, obey, and love him. And he may well think less of the consequences of conduct, and more of those principles by which conduct is governed, of those motives by which action is inspired. Loyalty and gratitude, devotion and sympathetic admiration, may well lead to such a life as shall be its own reward. However it may faro with a man in this life, he chooses the good part who hates that which is evil and loves that which is good, whose convictions are just, and whose life is in harmony with his convictions. For such a man all things work together for good.T.
Est 8:12-14
The certainty of retribution.
Again and again the writer of this remarkable book reverts to the same mysterious and perplexing facts of human society. As soon as men began to observe carefully and to think seriously, they were distressed by the inequality of the human lot, and by the apparent absence of a just arrangement of human affairs. If a family is wisely and righteously ordered, the obedient children are rewarded; whilst the selfish, willful, rebellious children are chastised. In a well-administered government the law-abiding citizens are regarded and treated with favor, whilst the strong arm of the law is brought down heavily upon the idle and the criminal. Now, if God be the Father and the King of humanity, how is it that the affairs of the world are not so administered that the good are recompensed, and the wicked duly, swiftly, and effectively punished? Can there be a just Ruler who is also omniscient to observe and almighty to carry out his purposes of righteous government? Such are the thoughts which have passed through the minds of reflecting men in every age, and which passed through the mind of the writer of this Book of Ecclesiastes, and which are expressed in this passage.
I. THE PERPLEXING FACTS OF OBSERVATION. These are recorded in the fourteenth verse, and are described as “a vanity which is done upon the earth.”
1. The just suffer the inflictions which seem appropriate to the wicked.
2. The wicked reap the prosperity which might be expected to recompense the righteous. These are facts of human life which belong to no age, to no state of society more than to another. Taken by themselves, they do not satisfy the intellect, the conscience, of the inquirer.
II. THE ASSURED CONVICTION OF FAITH. The Preacher, regarding the admitted facts with the eye of faith, comes to a conclusion which is not supported by mere reasoning upon observed facts. For him, and indeed for every truly religious man, there is a test of character which determines the destiny of spiritual beings; the discrimination is made between those who fear God and those who fear him not. Time and earth may not witness the award; but it is the award of the Almighty Judge and Lord.
1. It will not be well with the wicked, even though he may be permitted to continue anti to repeat his offences.
2. On the other hand, it shall be well with them that fear God. Such convictions are implanted by God himself; the righteous Lord has implanted them in the mind of his righteous people, and nothing can shake them, deep-seated as they are in the moral nature, which is the most abiding work of the Creator-Spirit.
III. THE ATTITUDE OF GODLY WISDOM. Those who, in the face of the facts described, nevertheless cherish the convictions approved, may reasonably apply such convictions to the practical control of the moral life.
1. Patience should be cultivated in the presence of perplexing and often distressing anomalies. We must wait in order that we may see the end, which is not yet.
2. Quiet confidence is ever the strength of God’s people. They do not lean upon circumstances; they lean upon God, who never changes, and who will not fail those who place their trust in him.
3. Expectation of deliverance and acceptance. God may tarry; but he will surely appear, and will vindicate and save his own. Our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. Much has happened to test our faith, our endurance; but when the trial has been sufficiently prolonged and severe to answer the purpose of our all-wise Father, it will be brought to an end. “Unto the upright light ariseth out of darkness;” “The Lord is mindful of his own.”T.
Est 8:16
Man’s busy life.
The Preacher was observant, not only of the phenomena and processes of nature, but also of the incidents and transactions of human life. In fact, man was his chief interest and his chief study. He observed the diligence of the laborious; the incessant activity of the scheming, the restless, the acquisitive. How he would have been affected by the spectacle of modern commercial lifesay in London or Paris, New York or Viennawe can only imagine; but as things were then, he was impressed by the marvelous activity and untiring energy which were displayed by his fellow-men in the various avocations of life.
I. MAN‘S OWN NATURE AND CONSTITUTION IS ACTIVE. It would be an absurd misrepresentation of man’s being to consider him as capable only of feeling and of knowledge. Intellectual and emotional he is; but, possessed of will, he is enterprising, inquiring, and active. Nature does indeed act upon him; but he reacts upon nature, subdues it to his purposes, and impresses upon it his thoughts.
II. MAN‘S CIRCUMSTANCES ARE SUCH AS TO CALL FORTH HIS ACTIVITY. Human nature is endowed with wants, which prove, as a matter of fact, to be the means to his most valuable possessions and his chief enjoyments. His bodily necessities urge him to toil; and their supply and satisfaction, in many cases, absorb almost all disposable energy. His intellectual aspirations constrain to much endeavor; curiosity and inquiry prompt to efforts considerable in themselves, and lasting all through life. The family and social relations are the motive to many labors. Could one enter a market, an exchange, a port, and could one not merely witness the movements of body and of features which strike every eye, but penetrate the motives and purposes, the hopes anti fears, which dwell in secret in the breasts of the busy throng, something might be discerned which would furnish a key to the busy activity of life.
III. BUSINESS ACTIVITY IS ACCOMPANIED WITH MANY PERILS. The laborer, the craftsman, the merchant, the lawyer, all have their various employments and interests, which are in danger of becoming engrossing. Perhaps the main temptation of the very busy is towards worldliness. The active and toiling are prone to lose sight of everything which does not contribute to their prosperity, and especially of the higher relations of their being and their immortal prospects. Young men entering upon professional and commercial life need especially to be warned against worldliness, to be reminded that it is possible to gain the whole world, and yet to lose the, soul, the higher and worthier life. A man may become covetous, or at least avaricious; he may lose his sensibilities to what is noblest, purest, and best; he may adopt a lower standard of value, may move upon a lower plane of life.
IV. YET THE LIFE OF CONSTANT ACTIVITY IS DESIGNED BY DIVINE WISDOM TO BE THE MEANS OF SPIRITUAL PROFIT. Like all the appointments of providence, this is disciplinary. Business is not only a temptation, it may be an occasion of progress, a means to moral improvement. A busy man may learn to consecrate his powers to his Creator’s service and glory; in the discharge of active duties he may grow in wisdom, in patience, even in self-denial lie may do with his might that which his hand findeth to do, he may redeem the time, he may prepare for the account to be rendered at last of the deeds done in the body.T.
Est 8:17
The impenetrable, inscrutable mystery.
Plain people often think that a wise man is a man who knows, if not all things, yet all things to which he has directed his attention. It does not enter into their mind that wisdom lies largely in the consciousness of the limitation of the human powers. A great thinker has justly and beautifully said that the larger the circle of knowledge, the larger the external circumference which reveals itself to the apprehension. The writer of Ecclesiastes was a wise man, but he confesses himself to have been baffled in his endeavor to find out and master all the work of man, and much more the work of God. In this confession he was not singular. The man who knows a little may be vain of his knowledge; but the man who knows much knows full well how much there is which to him is unknown, and how much more is by him unknowable.
I. THE FACT THAT THE THOUGHTFUL MAN IS BAFFLED IN HIS ENDEAVOR TO COMPREHEND GOD‘S WAYS, AND TO COMPREHEND HUMAN LIFE AND DESTINY.
II. THIS IS JUST WHAT IS TO BE EXPECTED FROM A CONSIDERATION OF
(1) man’s finite nature, and
(2) God’s infinite wisdom.
III. THE PROFITABLENESS OF THIS ARRANGEMENT.
1. It tends to raise our thought of God to a juster elevation.
2. It calls forth
(1) humility,
(2) submission, and
(3) faith.
3. It makes the future infinitely interesting and attractive. What we know not here we shall know hereafter. Sow we know as in a mirror, dimly; then, face to lace.
“Here it is given only to survey
Dawnings of bliss and glimmerings of day;
Heaven’s fuller affluence mocks our dazzled sight
Too swift its radiance and too clear its light.”
T.
HOMILIES BY W. CLARKSON
Est 8:8
Death-our power and our powerlessness.
The Preacher brings before us the familiar fact of
I. OUR POWERLESSNESS IN THE PRESENCE OF DEATH. There are evils from which large resources, or high rank, or exceptional abilities may secure us; but in these death is not included. No man may escape it. Some men have lived so long that “death has seemed to have forgotten them;” but their hour has come at last. Death is a campaign in which there is “no furlough” given. Therefore:
1. Let every man be in readiness for it; let us live “as those who today indeed are on the earth, but who to-morrow may be in heaven.” Let not death surprise us with some urgent duty undone, he neglect of which will leave our nearest relatives or dearest friends in difficulty or distress.
2. Let us all measure the limit of our life; and let us feel that since so much is to be done by us if we can, for narrower and for wider circles, and since there is but a brief period in which to do it, let us address ourselves seriously, energetically, patiently, devoutly, to the work which the Divine Husbandman has given us to do. But the statement of the Preacher, reminding us of this familiar truth, may suggest to us, by contrast
II. OUR PROVINCE AND OUR POWER IN THE PROSPECT OF DEATH. Although it is utterly hopeless that we can avert the stroke of the” last enemy,” we may do much in regard to it.
1. We can often defer its coming by the wise regulation of our life; we cannot “retain our spirit” when our hour is come, but we may put that hour much further on by prudence and virtue. Folly will ante-date, but wisdom will post-date it. We cannot, indeed, measure Divine favor by the number of our yearsthere is a Christian reading of the heathen adage, “Whom the gods love die young”but it is very often true that “with long life” God will “satisfy” the man who “sets his love upon him” (Psa 91:14-16).
2. We can gain a spiritual victory over it; we can
“so live, that we may dread
The grave as little as our bed.”
We may so abide in Jesus Christ, and so live in the light of his holy truth, that the idea of death, instead of being a terror or even a dark shadow at its close, will be positively welcome to our spirit.
3. We may find a friend in it when it comes; the friend whose kind hand opens for us the door of immortality, and ushers into the life which is free and full and endless.C.
Est 8:9, Est 8:10
Sin in power.
Amid the obscurities and uncertainties in which the precise meaning of this verse is lost, we may allow it to speak to us of the truth that when sin is in power it is in all respects an unsatisfactory thing. It is
I. INJURIOUS TO THE PEOPLE. “A man ruleth over men to their hurt” (Cox). The evils of misrule are obvious, for they have been only too often illustrated; they are these: the infliction of grave injustice; the encouragement of iniquity and discouragement of righteousness; disturbance and unsettlement, and consequent reduction in various spheres of useful industry; decline of activity, morality, worship.
II. HURTFUL TO THE HOLDER HIMSELF. “One man hath power over another to his own hurt”. It is certainly and most profoundly true, whether here stated or not, that the holding of power by a bad man is hurtful to himself. It elevates him in his own eyes when he needs to be humbled therein; it gives him the opportunity of indulgence, and indulgence is certain to feed an evil inclination, or to foster an unholy habit; it makes injurious flattery the probable, and a beneficial remonstrance the unlikely, thing in his experience.
III. OF BRIEF DURATION. If we only wait awhile we shall “see the wicked buried.” It is probable enough that sin in power will be guilty of serious excesses, and will therefore bring down upon itself those human resentments or those Divine judgments which end in death. But, apart from this, an evil course must end at death. God has put a limit to our human lives which, though it sometimes takes from the field a brave and powerful champion, on the other hand relieves society of the impure and the unjust. Sin in power is bound fast by the tether which it is quite unable to snap (see Psa 37:35, Psa 37:36).
IV. CONTRACTING GUILT. They “had come and gone from the place of the holy.” They had either
(1) been professing to administer justice, and had done injustice; or
(2) attended the place of privilege, and had despised their opportunity. Either way, they bad been “laying up for themselves wrath against the day of wrath.”
V. GOING DOWN INTO OBLIVION. The sense may be that this happens too often to the righteous; but it is certainly appropriate to the wicked. And is it not more applicable to them? For no man tries to remember them. No one proposes to erect monuments or institute memorials of them. There is a tacit understanding, if nothing more, that their name shall be dropped, that their memory shall perish. The only kind thing that can be done concerning them is to leave their name unspoken.
1. Be content with the exercise of a holy and benignant influence. It is well to be powerful if God wills it. But most men have to live without it, and a human life may be destitute of it, and yet be truly happy, and be of real service to a great many souls.
2. Resolve to leave a holy influence and a fragrant memory behind. We may have to content ourselves with a very simple memorial stone, but if we leave kindly memories and good influences in many hearts, so that in our case” the memory of the just is blessed,” we shall not have lived in vain.C.
Est 8:11-13
The perversion of God’s patience.
No obscurity hangs over this passage; the evil to which the Preacher refers is clear enough and common enough, while his condemnation of it is distinct and decisive.
I. A PALPABLE FACT IN THE GOVERNMENT OF GOD. The fact is that God often lets sin go unpunished, or, as we should rather say, partly unpunished. The tyrant is not dethroned; the fraudulent dealer is not convicted and sentenced; the murderer is not apprehended; the drunkard and the debauchee are not driven from the society which they disgrace; the hypocrite is not exposed and expelled; the men who fill their purses or satisfy their cravings at the expense of the property or even the character of their neighbors are sometimes allowed to remain in positions of comfort and of honor. And it may be that even their health and their spirits appear untouched by their sins, and even by their vices.
II. ITS MISINTERPRETATION BY MANY. What does it mean that God allows this to happen? The guilty are not slow to convince themselves that it means safety to themselves. It is, they think, that God does not concern himself with the small particulars of human life, and will not therefore visit them with his penalties; or it is that God is too “good,” too kind, to punish his children for following the bent of their own nature; or it is that the world is not under the government of any righteous Ruler at all, but only subject to certain laws of which they may prudently make use for their ultimate immunity. It is that they may safely go on in their evil course without fear of consequences.
III. THEIR COMPLETE MISTAKE. They argue that because we always make penalty follow crime as soon as we can, and because our non-infliction of it argues our intention to condone it altogether, it is the same with God, and that his forbearance to punish is proof that he does not intend to do so. Thus they think that “God is altogether such a one as ourselves.” But they are wrong; he “will reprove us and set [our sins] in order before our eyes” (see Psa 1:1-6 :21). We always make penalty pursue wrongdoing without any interval, because
(1) we are afraid the criminal will escape us, or
(2) we fear that we ourselves may be taken from the scene. But God is not hurried by such considerations as these. The guilty can never get beyond his reach, and he is ever present. Time does not enter into the account of him who is “from everlasting to everlasting.” God’s long forbearance is, therefore, no proof of Divine indifference or of the absence of a ruling hand from the affairs of men.
IV. ITS TRUE SIGNIFICANCE. What the Divine long-suffering really means is that God is patient with us in the hope that we shall repent and live (see Eze 33:11; Rom 2:4; 1Ti 2:4; and especially 2Pe 3:9). The truth is that
(1) while men do often seem to escape the retribution that is due to them, and while they do in fact enjoy a large measure of Divine forbearance;
(2) sin is always suffering, and is on its way to doom.
(a) If outward and visible evils .are not attending it, inward and spiritual evils are.
(b) Sin always tends toward misery and shame, and is working it out, as the event will show. Even if it should escape the hundredth time, there is a number that will prove fatal.
(3) The righteous man has a distinct and immeasurable advantage. It is “well with them that fear God.”
(a) Piety and virtue have the promise of the life that now is. Sobriety, chastity, uprightness, diligence, prudence, courtesy, kindness,these are all making for health and for prosperity, and for the best friendship which earth can offer.
(b) They lead up to the gates of the heavenly city.C.
HOMILIES BY J. WILLCOCK
Est 8:1
Sweetness and light.
The wisdom which is here spoken of as conferring upon its possessor an incomparable superiority is not mere wealth of intellectual knowledge, or a wide and accurate acquaintance with any department of science or philosophy. It is rather a moral condition, a state of heart and mind with an outward life consonant with it, a temperament and disposition attained by long and careful endeavor. In our modern use of the word, wisdom is equivalent to knowledge, and generally indicates mental endowments and equipment which may or may not enable its possessor to act sensibly in the ordinary affairs of life. We are familiar enough with the phenomena of men of science who in practical matters are as helpless as children, who betray a gross and astounding ignorance of things which lie outside the department of knowledge which they have cultivated, or who make it manliest to all that their knowledge has not had a refining influence upon them, and delivered them from the evil of being biassed by the disturbing influence of prejudices and passions. Such wisdom which we admire and respect, in spite of its unpractical character, is not of the same order with that which the Preacher eulogizes. The wisdom which is so often spoken of in the Hebrew Scriptures, especially in the Proverbs, in this Book of Ecclesiastes, and in Job, is a Divine faculty by which a man is enabled to live a well-ordered life. Its source is in God, but it is not confined to the one nation which he chose, or synonymous with the exceptional revelations made to it. Thus the wisdom of Solomon is declared to have been higher in degree than that attained by any in the neighboring peoples, but not different in kind (1Ki 4:29-31). Then, too, its range is very wide. Nothing is too high, nothing is too low, for wisdom “fitly” to “order.” Law and government (Pro 8:15,Pro 8:16), and even the precepts of husbandry (Isa 28:23-29), are equally her productions with those moral observations which constitute in the main the three books of Scripture to which I have referred. She is the source of skill of every kind, the mistress of the arts, the guardian of the vast and inexhaustible stores garnered by experience, from which men may equip themselves for meeting every emergency of life. The wise man is God-fearing, free from superstition and fanaticism, prudent, shrewd, a good counselor, a safe guide. The enthusiastic manner in which the influence of wisdom upon a character is described reminds us of the somewhat similar sentiment expressed by Ovid-
“Adde quod ingenuas didicisse fideliter artes,
Emollit mores nec sinit esse feros.”
(‘Epp. ex Ponto,’ 2.9, 47.)
“A man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the boldness of his face shall be changed.” The words depict very vividly and beautifully the almost transfiguring effect of serene wisdom upon the countenancehow it lights up the face, and gives to even homely features an exquisite charm. The coarse, sullen, vacant stare of ignorance is transformed by the “sweetness and light” with which the soul is suffused. There is a reference probably to the literal shining of Moses’ countenance when he came down from the mount on which he had seen God face to face (Exo 34:29). We must all of us have known cases in which true piety and wisdom, such as is learned from Christ, have had this refining and transforming influence; persons of little ordinary education or culture, to whom religion has given really new intellectual power, and whose tranquility and peace of spirit has given an air of heavenly serenity to their whole bearing and manner. And, indeed, in every ease a holy disposition of mind has a refining effect upon those who cherish it. The face is an index to the character, and if the emotions that are expressed upon it are pure and worthy, they cannot fail in time to transform it in some measureto tone down what may have been its natural harshness, and to banish from it all traces of coarse and sensual passions. An example of religion giving intellectual power, or rather of drawing out the faculties which but for it would have remained unexercised, we may see in the life of John Bunyan. The genius which is so marvelously displayed in his works, and which gives him a high place in the literature of his country, would never have shown itself but for the wonderful change in his life, when, from being a profane, careless, godless fellow, he became a true-hearted servant of Christ.
The abruptness with which this chapter opens may, it has been supposed, have been intended to call the attention of the reader to the hidden significance of the words that are about to be spoken, as our Lord often emphasized his utterances by the saying, “He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.” Something there is in what he is about to add to be read between the lines. And the probable explanation of the suggestive question, and the allusion to a wise man’s understanding “the interpretation of a thing,” is in the fact that the writer veils a protest against despotism in the garb of the maxims of servility (Plumptre).J.W.
Est 8:2-5
Allegiance of subjects.
It is scarcely to be denied that the wisdom which the Preacher exhorts his readers to exemplify in their relations as subjects with their kings, has something very like a servile tone about it. “There is not a trace of the enthusiastic loyalty of a Hebrew to a native sovereign, ‘ whose power loveth righteousness, who judgeth God’s people with righteousness; in whose days the righteous flourish, and abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth” (Psa 72:7). Nor do we find the freeman’s boldness, with which an Elijah could confront an apostate or a tyrant king. That fire is spout! The counsels here, as where he recurs to the same subject in the last five verses of Ecc 10:1-20; are those of submission, forbearance, self-control, prudence in dealing with a power irresistible, overbearing, often oppressive, yet which carries within itself the seeds of decay. Such advice may well have been needed by a generation of Jews, proud, intractable, detesting foreign rule, and groaning under the tyranny of an alien monarch” (Bradley). Loyal obedience to a duly constituted authority is declared to be
(1) a matter of conscience (Ecc 10:2);
(2) a prudent course (Ecc 10:3, Ecc 10:4, Ecc 10:5);
because by it we escape the punishment incurred by rebellion, and enjoy some tranquility even under the worst rule. And as a consolation to those who are indignant at a tyrannous use of power, the reminder is given (5b) that punishment for evil deeds will be meted out in due time by a higher hand than ours.
II. OBEDIENCE A MATTER OF CONSCIENCE. (Ecc 10:2.) “I counsel thee to keep the king’s commandment, and that in regard of the oath of God.” Though the words “counsel thee” are not in the Hebrew text, no better have been suggested to fill up the gap. But the emphasis which is laid upon the I by the omission of the verb may be interpreted to mean that the writer is giving a personal opinion, and not speaking authoritatively on a matter concerning which different men might form very diverse judgments. And we may compare with it St. Paul’s manner of speaking, “But to the rest say, not the Lord” (1Co 7:12, Revised Version), as contrasted with “I command, yet not I, but the Lord” (1Co 7:10). If we interpret the words in this way, a considerable measure of what I have called the servility of their tone is taken away. The writer is giving us prudential counsels, but of course the question still remains open whether there are not in certain emergencies higher considerations than those of prudence. He tells how tranquility may be preserved even under the rule of a tyrant; but it is for us to decide whether higher blessings than that of tranquility are not to be striven for. The great cautiousness with which he speaks is not unreasonable when we remember how ready men are to make use of passages of Scripture to justify even questionable conduct, and how many errors have sprung from an ignorant and self-willed misinterpretation of isolated texts. The advice, then, given is “to keep the king’s commandment” out of regard to the oath of allegiance taken to him or imposed by him. No hasty or ill-advised breach of such an oath is justifiable. It would seem that this passage was in St. Paul’s mind, though he does not directly quote from it, when he says, “Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake“ (Rom 13:5). As is well known, both the words of the Preacher, and the teaching of St. Paul in the thirteenth chapter of Romans, have been taken as laying down the rule of passive obedience for all subjects in all circumstances. However cruel the despot, the duty of subjects to obey him implicitly, and to make no attempt to deprive him of his power, has been held by many to be clearly laid down by the Word of God. And great stress has been laid upon the fact that the ruler of the civilized world, when St. Paul wrote the Epistle to the Romans, was Nero, one of the most infamous and cruel tyrants who ever wore the purple. In our own country during the seventeenth century, when the question of the prerogative of the sovereign and the rights and duties of subjects engaged the attention of all, these portions of Scripture were often interpreted to teach that the king’s will was by right, and by the authority of God’s Word, above all charters and statutes and acts of parliament, and that no misuse of his power could justify rebellion against him. But those who took up this ground forgot or ignored the fact that kings gave duties towards their subjects, that coronation oaths bind them to keep the laws; and that St. Paul, in the very same place in which he commands subjects to obey, describes the kind of rule which has an absolute claim upon their allegiance. “For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil . Do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: for he is the minister of God to thee for good a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.” It must surely be evident to all whose minds have not been blinded by a grotesque and monstrous theory, that a ruler who is a terror to good works, who rewards vice and punishes virtue, and uses the sword of justice to enforce his own selfish and cruel purposes, cannot claim from subjects the obedience which the apostle commands them to render to one of the very opposite character. But though passive obedience to tyrannical government cannot be commended on any higher ground than that of prudence, there can be no doubt that in ordinary circumstances the faithfulness of subjects to their rulers is a religious duty. And so we find in many passages of Scripture blame attached to those who thought that rebellion against the authority even of heathen kings, to whom the chosen people might be in subjection, was justifiable (Isa 28:15; Isa 30:1; Eze 17:15; Jer 27:12; of. Mat 22:21).
II. A PRUDENT COURSE. (Verses 3, 4, 5a.) In these verses the Preacher “seeks to dissuade his readers from casting off their allegiance to the king, or taking part with the enemies of the monarch under any hasty impulse whatever.” “Do not lightly forsake the post of duty, join in no conspiracy against the king’s throne or life,” the words might be paraphrased. His power is absolute; he is above courts of law, and therefore any action against him must be attended with great risk. Of course, as I have said, the course recommended is a prudential one, and there are circumstances in which many will think that the oppressiveness of a tyrannical government has reached a pitch justifying rebellion against it. But those who seek tranquility will bear a great deal, and not be eager to enter on any such undertaking. In ordinary circumstances, those who obey the king’s commandment will experience no evil thing (5a), cases being left out of view in which the king requires obedience to decrees contrary to the Divine laws (Dan 3:1-30; Dan 6:1-28.); while the risk of failure in attempts to overthrow his power, and the anarchy and crime that generally attend insurrection against constituted authority, are calculated to make the wise man pause before he resolves to become a rebel. The advice given by the Preacher is so carefully stated, and based on such reasonable grounds, that perhaps one should not term it servile. And this impression is strengthened by a consideration of what is implied rather than expressed in the latter part of verse 5. There is hope of a beneficial change even for those who submit in silence to the worst evils of despotism. It is to be found in the conviction of there being a power higher than that of earthly sovereigns, which will in its own time mete out punishment to all transgressors. The wise man’s heart “discerneth both time and judgment;” he will wait patiently for the “time and season of judgment which God hath put in his own power” (Lam 3:26; Ecc 3:1, Ecc 3:11, Ecc 3:17). Evil doing cannot escape punishment; however exalted in station the offender may be, the time will come round when his deeds will be weighed in an unerring balance, and receive the chastisement they deserve. His high-handed disregard of equity and mercy may prevail up to a certain point, but retribution will come when the measure of his iniquity has been filled up. And the knowledge that this is so will help to console and strengthen the wise in the dark and evil day.J.W.
Est 8:6-8
The doom of tyrants.
In words which are purposely dark the writer speaks of the fall of unrighteous tyrants. It is with bated breath that he whispers to those who are writhing helplessly under the oppressive rule of cruel despots, that the coil under which they suffer works its own cure in time, and that those who have their own way at present will sooner or later have to succumb to a power greater than their own. it is with considerable difficulty that the drift of the passage is to be made out, but with this clue in our hands it becomes intelligible. In the sixth and seventh verses there are four statements, each introduced by the same conjunction, , “for,” or “because,” and by retaining it in each case, instead of varying it as is done in our English versions, the sequence of thought becomes clearer. The sense of the verses is as follows: “The heart of the wise man will know the time and judgment, and will keep quiet; for
(1) there is a time and a judgment appointed by God in which the wicked ruler will be duly punished (cf. Ecc 3:17);
(2) the wickedness of man is heavy upon him, and will entail its own punishment,the misery caused by a tyrant is a weight which will bring him down at last;
(3) no man knows the future, or that which will take place, and therefore no despot is able absolutely to guard himself against the stroke of vengeance; for
(4) who can tell him how the vengeance wilt be brought about? He may look in this direction and in that for the longed-for information, but in vain (cf. Isa 47:13, etc.). One thing, however, is certain, that whilst the wicked “are drowned in their carousing, they shall be consumed like stubble fully dry” (Nah 1:10). The inexorable nature of the doom which will fall upon the cruel despot is described in highly vivid language. There are four things which are impossible for him to do.
1. “There is no man that hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit.” Life can be shortened or cut off at any moment, but can by no art be prolonged beyond the fixed term. The despot cannot by his power escape the (loom of death, any more than can the meanest of his subjects. Or understanding by not “the spirit of man,” but “the wind,” to which Divine judgments are often likened (Isa 41:16; Isa 57:13; Jer 4:11-13; Jer 22:22), it is as fruitless to try to keep back the Divine judgments as to prevent the wind from bursting forth.
2. There is no one who has power over the day of death, or is able to avert the arrival of that “king of terrors” (Job 18:14); the pestilence walketh forth in darkness, and the sickness wasteth at noonday (Psa 91:6).
3. There was no discharge granted from the ranks in the time of war under the vigorous law of Persia, and the Divine law of requital cuts off with equal certainty all hope of escape from the guilty transgressor; and lastly:
4. Wickedness will not deliver its master. When the hour of Divine vengeance strikes, the sinner shall receive the meet reward of his actions. “The wages of sin is death” (Rom 6:23) (Wright). By no lavish bribes, by no use of power, by no arts or endeavors, can the evil-doer, however high his rank may be, avert the day of judgment, which may precede, but which, if it does not precede, will certainly coincide with the day of death. And in that time, when he will have to stand before the tribunal of the King of kings, none of his deeds of cruelty and oppression will be passed over. Such is the teaching half concealed beneath the words of the Preacher; but not so veiled as to be hidden from the discernment of a reader made sensitive by the righteous indignation which oppression excites in a healthy mind. His words pass from an apparent servility of tone into a generous anger, and there is a triumphant ring in his voice as he speaks of the immutability of the law or of the will, upon which the moral government of the world is based. But though horror of injustice and hardness of heart is manifest in his words, they are not instinct with any less worthy feeling. He does not justify revenge, or hint at the advisability of subjects taking the law into their own hands when their patience has been long tried. But he raises the matter to a higher level, and makes faith in God the source of consolation; and in his very words of counsel to subjects adduces considerations which are calculated to weigh with their rulers, and make those of them who are still amenable to reason, pause in a course of oppression and cruelty.J.W.
Est 8:9, Est 8:10
Unequal lots.
The enunciation in the preceding verses of a firm conviction in the moral government of the world by God might have been expected to have silenced for ever doubts excited by the inequalities and irregularities so often apparent in human society. The possession of a master key might have been expected to deliver the wanderer from the mazes of the labyrinth. But so great is the power of the actual, so varying is the strength of faith, that at times belief in a God of infinite wisdom and power and love seems a fallacious theory, contradicted and disproved by the facts of everyday life. And so our author, after bidding his readers to wait patiently for the manifestation of God’s justice against evil-doers, gives utterance to the perplexity and distress occasioned by his long delay. He thinks of the successful oppressor, prosperous in life and honored in burial, and contrasts with him the righteous driven into exile, and dying in obscurity and forgotten by all his fellows. Such seems to be the meaning of these verses, according to the translation given in the Revised Version, “All this have I seen, and applied my heart unto every work under the sun: there is a time wherein one man hath power over another to his hurt. And withal I saw the wicked buried, and they came to the grave; and they that had done right went away from the holy place, and were forgotten in the city: this also is vanity.” It is just the state of matters described in the first part of the parable of the rich man and Lazarusthe one enjoying in this life good things, the other eviland because the Preacher is not able to draw aside the veil that divides the temporal from the eternal, he cannot be sure that the inequality of the lots of the wicked and the righteous is ever remedied. He describes
(1) the prosperity of the wicked; and
(2) the adversity of the righteous.
I. THE PROSPERITY OF THE WICKED. It is still the despot whom he has in his mind’s eye. He sees him ruling over others to their hurt, and at last receiving honorable burial, and finding rest in the grave. No insurrection of oppressed and pillaged subjects cuts short his tyrannous rule; he is undisturbed by enemies from without; he escapes the dagger of the assassin, and dies peacefully in his bed. And even then, when the fear he inspired in his lifetime is relaxed, no outbreak of popular indignation interferes with the stately ceremonial with which he is laid in the tomb. “There is not wanting the long procession of the funeral solemnities through the streets of Jerusalem, the crowd of hired mourners, the spices and ointment very precious, wrapping the body; nor yet the costly sepulcher, with its adulatory inscription.” He might have been the greatest benefactor his subjects had known, the holiest of his generation, so completely has he received the portion of those who have lived prosperous and honored lives (cf. 2Ch 16:14; 2Ch 26:23; 2Ch 28:27). The punishment merited by an evil life has not fallen upon him; the Divine Judge has delayed his coming until it is too late, as far as this life is concerned, for justice to be done, and therefore the faith of those who wait patiently upon God is subjected to a severe strain.
II. THE ADVERSITY OF THE RIGHTEOUS. While the wicked flourish in undisturbed peace, the righteous have often to endure hardships. The decree of banishment goes out against them; with slow and lingering steps they are compelled against their will to depart from the place which they love. They must go forth, and only too soon are they forgotten in the city, i.e. the holy city; a younger generation knows nothing more of them, and not even a gravestone brings them back to the memory of their people. This also is vanity, like the many others already registeredthis, viz; that the wicked while living, and also in their death, possess the sacred soil; while, on the contrary, the upright are constrained to depart from it and are soon forgotten (Delitzsch). It seems a stain upon the Divine righteousness that this should be so; that so long an interval should elapse between the commission of the offence and the dawning of the day of retribution, and that in so many cases it would appear as if retribution never came. This is calculated to try our faith, and happy are we if the trial strengthens our faith. But one thing must not be left out of accountthe Preacher dwells upon it in a subsequent verseand that is that external circumstances of prosperity or adversity are not of supreme importance; that righteousness even with misfortunes is infinitely preferable to wickedness, whatever measure of external prosperity it may enjoy. Whether happiness or misery in this life be their outward lot, in the end “it shall be well with them that fear God” (Est 8:12).J.W.
Est 8:11-13
Retribution certain.
The prosperity of the wicked is not only an evil in itself, but it leads the way to a more deliberate and unrestrained course of sin. The fact that the Divine sentence that condemns evil is not executed speedily, leads many to think that they can sin with impunity. They do not see that the slowness with which the messenger of vengeance often travels gives opportunity for repentance and amendment before the stroke of punishment falls. Men think they are secure, and give themselves fearlessly to the practice of evil. Yet the Preacher could not give up his conviction that punishment of evil was but delayed and not averted. Though he saw the sinner do evil a hundred times and prolong his days, he knew that the righteousness of God, which in the present world seems so often obscured and thwarted, would in the end assert itself (Est 8:12). Though the sinner enjoyed prosperity, it was a deceitful calm before the storm; bat the righteous who truly feared God had a peace of spirit which no outward misfortunes or persecutions could disturb. “Appearances, the Preacher saw clearly enough, were against him, yet his faith was strong even under all such difficulties, and through it he was victorious” (Wright) (cf. 1Jn 5:1-21 :24). The prosperity of the wicked is, after all, only apparent. It has no sure foundation; can anticipate no long duration. His days may be many in number, but they soon pass away “as a shadow;” and when the last comes, every wish for prolonged life will be in vain. He may be at the very height of enjoyment when the hour strikes for his enforced departure from the world in which he has abused the long-suffering of God; and no prayers or entreaties or struggles will avail to prolong his days. The shadow on the dial cannot be forced to retrace its course, or to journey more slowly. “His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his dust; in that very day his thoughts perish.”J.W.
Est 8:14, Est 8:15
One way out of perplexity.
The Preacher has just attained for a moment to higher ground, from which he may get a wider view of life with all its changes and anomalies (Est 8:12, Est 8:13). His hope revives, his faith comes back. “For a moment he has pierced through the ring which has confined him to the interests of common life, and risen also above his own dark misgivings; and there has flashed across his soul for a moment the certainty that there is a power in the world that ‘makes for righteousness,’ a Divine and supreme law behind all the puzzles and anomalies of life, which will solve them all. He lays his hand on this, but he cannot grasp it” (Bradley.). The inequalities in human lot, the just suffering as though they had been wicked, the wicked prospering as though they had been righteous, afflict his heart once more (Est 8:13). His recurrence so often to this perplexing phenomenon is almost painful; it reveals a distress so deep that no arguments can diminish it, no exercise of faith can charm it away. Nothing but fresh light upon the mysteries of life and death can give relief, and this is denied him. He is one of those of whom the Savior spoke (Luk 10:24) who desired to see and hear the things seen and heard by those who were privileged to receive a revelation of God in Christ, but whose longings were doomed never to be satisfied on earth. In the mean time to what conclusion did the Preacher come? To that which he has already expressed four times over (Ecc 2:24; Ecc 3:12, Ecc 3:22; Ecc 5:18)that it is better to enjoy the good things of life than to pine after an impossible ideal; to eat the fruit of one’s toil in spite of all that is calculated to sadden and perplex (Est 8:14). Yet we must be fair to him. He does not recommend riot and excess, or a life of mere epicurean enjoyment. There is work to be done in life before enjoyment is won; there is a God from whom the blessings come as a gift, and the remembrance of this fact will prevent mere brutish self, indulgence. The fear of God gives a dignity to his counsel which is wanting in the somewhat similar words of heathen poets, in which we have Epicureanism pure and simplein the songs of Anacreon and Horace and Omar Khayyam. It would indeed be a mistake to imagine that the advice he gives, however often it is repeated, is the best that can be given, or even the best that he has to give. It prescribes but a temporary relief from sorrow and care and perplexity. And even when he makes the most of the satisfaction gained by “eating and drinking and being merry,” we remember his own words, that “it is better to go to the house of mourning than to the house of feasting” (Ecc 7:2).J.W.
Est 8:16, Est 8:17
Vanity of philosophizing.
The endeavor had been in vain to discover the principle according to which it happens that the just sometimes receive the reward of the wicked, and the wicked that of the righteous (Ecc 8:14). Equal failure attends the endeavor to understand the purpose and end of the toil and labor in which men are ceaselessly engaged. That all that was done was “a work of God,” the carrying out of a Divine law. the accomplishment of a Divine plan, he did not doubt (Est 8:17); but he was unable {o see the connection of the individual parts with the wholethe order and symmetry of events in their course he could not recognize. Two things he had sought to attain:
(1) to know wisdom, to understand the essence and causes and objects of things; and
(2) to bring this wisdom to bear upon the facts of life, to find in it a clue for the interpretation of that which was perplexing and abnormal. But success in his endeavor was denied him. The toils and cares which fill up laborious days, and drive away sleep from the eyes of the weary, seemed to him to be in many cases utterly fruitless; to be imposed upon men for no end; to have no connection with any higher plan or purpose by which one might suppose the world to be governed. What, then, is his conclusion? It is that the finite cannot comprehend the infinite; that no effort is adequate for the task; that the highest human wisdom is but as folly when it is bent upon forcing a solution of this great problem (Est 8:17). “Then I beheld all the work of God, that man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because however much a man labor to seek it out, yet he shall not find it; yea, moreover, though a wise man think to know it, yet he shall not be able to find it.” The agnosticism of the writer does not tend to atheism. He does not denyon the contrary, he affirmshis faith in a great Divine plan to which all the labors of men are related, though what it is and how it is being fulfilled he does not know. The tone in which he records his failure is not without a strain of bitterness; but one would wish to believe that its prevailing note is that of reverent submission to the Almighty, whose ways he could not comprehend, and that the writer’s thoughts would find adequate expression in the devout ejaculation of the apostle, “Oh the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out?” (Rom 11:33). The pregnant words of Hooker describe the attitude appropriate for creatures in presence of their Creator: “Dangerous it were for the feeble brain of man to wade far into the doings of the Most High; whom although to know be life, and joy to make mention of his -Name; yet our soundest knowledge is to know that we know him not as indeed he is, neither can know him, and our safest eloquence concerning him is our silence, when we confess without confession that his glory is inexplicable, his greatness above our Capacity and reach. He is above, and we upon the earth; therefore it behooveth our words to be wary and few” (‘Eccl. Pol.’ Ecc 1:2, Ecc 1:3).J.W.
Fuente: The Complete Pulpit Commentary
Ecc 8:1. Who is as the wise man? &c. Who is like the wise man, and who knoweth how to solve difficulties? A man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine; whereas a sullen look [Heb. The roughness of his face] would make him an object of hatred. The latter clause of this verse, setting aside the figures, might be thus expressed; A man’s wisdom will bring him favour; but arrogance will make him hated.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
2. Against the temptations to disloyalty and rebellion in national and civil relations
(Ecc 8:1-8)
1Who is as the wise man? and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing ? a mans wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the boldness of his face shall be 2changed. I counsel thee to keep the kings commandment, and that in regard of the oath of God. 3Be not hasty to go out of his sight: stand not in an evil thing; for he doeth whatsoever pleaseth him. 4Where the word of a king is there is power: and who may say unto him, What doest thou? 5Whoso keepeth the commandment shall feel no evil thing: and a wise mans heart discerneth both time and judgment. 6Because to every purpose there is time and judgment, therefore the misery of man is great upon him. 7For he knoweth not that which shall 8be: for who can tell him when it shall be ? There is no man that hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit: neither hath he power in the day of death : and there is no discharge in that war; neither shall wickedness deliver those that are given to it.
3. Against the oppressions of tyrants and other injustices
(Ecc 8:9-15.)
9All this have I seen, and applied my heart unto every work that is done under the sun: there is a time wherein one man ruleth over another to his own hurt. 10And so I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from the place of the holy, and they were forgotten in the city where they had so done: this is also vanity. 11Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. 12Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him: 13But it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his days, which are as a shadow; because he feareth not before God. 14There is a vanity which is done upon the earth; that there be just men, unto whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked: again, there be wicked men, to whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous: I said that this also is vanity. 15Then I commended mirth, because a man hath no better thing under the sun, than to eat, and to drink, and to be merry: for that shall abide with him of his labour the days of his life, which God giveth him under the sun.
[Ecc 7:29. is not rightly rendered onlythis only have I found. More correctly, this by itself, or besides, as something beyond what is said before of both sexes.T. L.]
[Ecc 8:1. ; there is no need of saying of this that it is more Chaldo; some such interchange of for is quite common in Hebrewsee the extensive list of cases given by the Jewish grammarian, Jona Ben Gannach. The 70 read to hate. So did the Syriac. denotes the sternness, or austerity, of the countenance. Wisdom clears it up, changes it to a bright and joyful aspect. See M. V.T. L.]
[Ecc 8:2 , Zckler would supply here. There is hardly need of thatI a kingss mouth; supply simply the substantive verb, I am a kings mouththat heed. It is an assertion by the writer of his royal right to give such advice. See M. V.T. L.]
[Ecc 8:10. . See Exeget.T. L.]
[Ecc 8:11. . See remarks on the appendix to Introduction, p.33.T. L.]
[Ecc 8:15. ; the conjunction here, has more than the mere copulative force. It denotes time, as it frequently does, and also a reason. Its mere conjunctive force is seldom alone when it connects sentences: Twas then I praised joythat is, when I took this view of things. =not simply to , but to , how that there is, etc.; and that this will remain, adhere to him.T. L.]
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
The subdivision of this section into three equal divisions or strophes, is indicated by the introductory remarks on the general contents, which are found in Ecc 7:23-29; Ecc 8:1; and Ecc 8:9. The divisions beginning with these passages are clearly different from each other in contents; Ecc 7:25-29 warns us against voluptuousness; Ecc 8:2-8 against rebellion towards civil authority; Ecc 8:9-15 against injustice. Since this latter theme does not close until the 14th and 15th verses, it seems quite improper to extend the third section simply to Ecc 8:10, as do Hengstenberg, Hitzig, et al., [the general introduction of the first part of Ecc 8:14 is, in comparison with Ecc 8:1; Ecc 8:9, and Ecc 7:23-25 too insignificant to be able to serve as the opening of a new division], just as we must declare the separation of Ecc 8:15 from the preceding, as the beginning of an entirely new section, (Hahn) decidedly inexpedient and destructive of the sense.
2. First Strophe. Introduction. Ecc 7:23-25. Concerning the difficulty of finding true wisdom, and Koheleths zealous search after it.All this have I proved with wisdomThis, therefore, formed the means and the goal of his searching. For the expression compare on the one hand Ecc 1:13, and, on the other, , Ecc 2:1. All this certainly does not refer to all the preceding from the beginning of the book, as Hengstenberg asserts, but mainly to the rules of life and practical counsels contained in Ecc 7:1-22.But it was far from meIt, i.e., wisdom in the absolute sense, perfected wisdom. A partial possession of wisdom is by no means excluded by this humble confession of not having found any; see Ecc 8:5; Ecc 7:11-16; Ecc 7:19, etc. Ecc 7:24. That which is far offi.e., the real innermost essence of wisdom lies far from human comprehension; comp. Job 28:12 ff.; Sirach 24:38 ff.; Bar 3:14 ff. Rosenmueller, Herzfeld, Hahn, Elster [and, at an earlier period, also Ewald] correctly consider as the subject of the clause; but cannot then be taken in the preterit sense, as is done by the three first named commentators [Herzfeld : that remains far off which was far off; Rosenmueller: procul abest, quod ante aderat; Hahn: that is far off which has been]. Knobel, Hitzig, Vaihinger, and, lately, Ewald, affirm that there is an emphatic prefixing of the-predicate far before the relative pronoun : That which is far off, and exceeding deep, who can find it out. But the examples quoted from Ecc 1:9; Job 23:9 scarcely justify so harsh a construction. The interpretation of Hengstenberg: that is far off. which, has been, i.e., the comprehension of what has been or is ( , Wisd. of Sol. 7:17) is opposed by the circumstance that, practical wisdom alone is here considered, and not theoretical,[1] for which reason also there can scarcely be a reference to the objective cognition of wisdom, or the knowledge of its objects. The interpretations of most of the ancients are decidedly ungrammatical, as of the Septuagint ( ), Vulgate (multo magis quam erat), Luther (It is far off, what will it be?); thus also is that of Kster (It is far off, what is that), and so many others.And exceeding deep.Lit., deep, deep. The repetition of expresses the superlative idea (Ewald, Lehrbuch, 303 c). Deep signifies difficult to be fathomed, comp. Pro 20:5, and especially Job 11:8, where the Divine doing and the Divine government are declared to be the absolute limit of all wisdom, or as deeper than hell; see also Psa 139:8; Rom 11:33. Ecc 7:25. I applied mine heart.Lit., I turned, I and my heart,a figure similar to that in Act 15:28 : ; comp. also the Son 5:2. That the heart also participated in the turning, shows it to be no thoughtless action, but one resting on deep reflection. The simple does not express a return from a path formerly followed, but now perceived to be an erroneous one (Hitizigs view). It is different with , then I turned, Ecc 2:20, which clearly marks the entrance into a path entirely new, whilst in this passage nothing is affirmed but the transition from a superficial to a deeper and more solicitous searching after wisdom. Comp. Hengstenberg and Vaihinger on this passage, which latter correctly gives the connection thus: Although wisdom in its fullness is unsearchable and unattainable, I did not refrain from searching after an insight into the relations of things, in order to learn the causes of the want of moral perfection; I wished, however, in learning wisdom, to learn also its counterpart, and thus to see that iniquity is every where folly.To know, and to search, and to seek out wisdom, etc.The two accusatives, wisdom and reason, belong only to the last of the three infinitives (); before which is left out, in order to separate it externally from the two preceding ones. is here, as in Ecc 7:27, reason, calculation, a result of the activity of the judgment, in examining and judging of the relations of practical life, therefore equivalent to insight, practical sagacity and knowledge of life. Vaihingers interpretation of in the sense of wisdom as calculation, is unnecessary, and indeed in direct contradiction to the construction in the following clause. The copula also in Ecc 8:2 does not express the explanatory sense of the expression, and indeed.And to know the wickedness of folly, and even of foolishness and madness.(Zckler: wickedness as folly, foolishness as madness). That this is to be thus translated is proved by the absence of the article[2] before the second accusative. Comp. for this construction Ewald, 284 b, and for the sentence, Ecc 1:17; Ecc 2:12 f.; Ecc 10:13.
3. First Strophe. Continuation and Conclusion. Ecc 7:26-29. A warning concerning an unchaste woman and her seductive arts. Hengstenberg, following older writers [and thus Seb. Schmid, Michael., Lampe, J. Lange, Starke, etc.) maintains that this harlot is an ideal personage, the false wisdom of the heathen; but that she is a representative of the female sex in general in its worst aspect, appears to be incontrovertible from Ecc 7:28-29, where women in general are represented as the more corrupt portion of humanity, corresponding with Sir 25:24; 1Ti 2:12-15. And as parallels to this passage we find above all those warnings of the Proverbs of Solomon against the harlot or strange woman, i.e., against unchaste intercourse with, women in general; comp. Pro 2:16 ff; Pro 5:2 ff; Pro 7:5 ff; Pro 22:14; Pro 23:27. And quite as arbitrary as the idealizing of this lascivious woman into the abstract idea of false wisdom, is the view of Hitzig, namely, that therein allusion is made to a definite historical person, Agathoclea, mistress of Ptolemy Philopater.And I find more bitter than death.For this figure comp. 1Sa 15:32; Sir 28:25; Sir 41:1; also Pro 5:4, etc.The woman whose heart is snares and nets. is to be connected with the suffix in and is to be regarded as copula between subject and predicate, which here emphatically precedes. In the comparison of the heart of the harlot to snares and nets, and her hands to bands, we naturally think, in the first instance, of her words and looks (as expressions of the thoughts of her heart), and, in the second, of voluptuous embraces.Whoso pleaseth God shall escape from her.Lit. He who is good in the sight of God. Comp. Ecc 2:26. The meaning is here as there, the God-fearing and just man, the contrary of or sinner, who by her () i.e., by the nets and snares of her heart, and by her loose seductive arts, is caught. Ecc 7:27. Behold, this have I found, saith the Preacher.Notwithstanding Ecc 1:1; Ecc 2:12; Ecc 12:9, where is without the article, we must still read here (comp. Ecc 12:8) and not ; for the word is every where else used as masculine, and the author cannot wish to express a significant contrast between the preaching wisdom and the amorous woman, since the expression, saith the Preacher, is here, as in those other passages, a mere introductory formula (though Hengstenberg thinks otherwise).Counting one by onenamely, considering, reflecting. Lit., one to the other, i.e., adding, arranging. The words are adverbially used, as in the phrase Gen 32:31.To find out the account.[ as in Ecc 7:25], giving the result of this action of arranging one after the other. This did not consist in comparison between woman and death, but in a summing up of those unfavorable observations concerning her which necessitates the final judgment, namely, that she is more bitter than death. The whole verse clearly refers to the foregoing, and does not, therefore, serve as an introduction to the contents of Ecc 7:28-29, as Hahn and several older authors contend, who begin a new section with this verse. There is rather a certain break immediately before Ecc 7:28, as the words at the beginning of this verse show. Ecc 7:28. Which yet my soul seeketh.The soul is represented as seeking, to indicate how much this seeking was a matter of the heart to the preacher; comp. the address: thou whom my soul loveth, Son 1:17; Son 3:1 ff. The finding not is then again attributed to the first person : and that which I found not.One man among a thousand have I foundi.e., among a thousand of the human race, I found, indeed, one righteous one, one worthy of the name of man, and corresponding to the idea of humanity. here stands for as, in the Greek, for . For the expression one among a thousand [lit., out of a thousand] comp. Job 9:3; Job 33:23; but for the sentence, Ecc 7:20 above, and Job 14:5; Mic 7:2, etc. The hereditary corruption of the entire human race is here as much presupposed as in the parallel passages; for Koheleth will hardly recognize the one righteous man that he found among a thousand as absolutely righteous, and therefore as in the primeval, pure and ideal sense of the first man before the fall.But a woman among all these have I not found. That is, one worthy of the name , in the primeval ideal sense of Gen 2:22-25, I did not find among all that thousand, which presented me at least one proper man. That he never found such a one, consequently that he considered the whole female sex as vicious and highly corrupt, cannot possibly be his opinion, as appears from Ecc 7:29, as also in Ecc 9:9. (See the praise of noble women in other documents of the Chokmah literature, as Pro 5:19; Pro 18:22; Pro 31:10 f.; Psalms 128. ff.). But that moral excellence among women, taken as a whole, is much more rarely found than among men, that sin reigns more uncontrolled among the former than the latter, and in the form of moral weakness and proneness to temptation, as well as in the inclination to seduce, to deceive and ensnaresuch is clearly the sense of this passage, a sense that harmonizes with Gen 3:16; Sir 25:24; 2Co 11:3; 1Ti 2:12 ff., as also with numerous other extra-biblical passages. Comp. also these sentences from the Talmud: It is better to follow a lion than a woman;Who follows the counsel of his wife arrives at hell;The mind of women is frivolous; also the Greek maxims: ; . Compare also the following Proverb from the Arabic of Meidani; Women are the snares of Satan, etc. (Comp. Wohlfarth, Knobel and Vaihinger on this passage).
Ecc 7:29. Lo, this only have I found. , alone, only (an adverb as in Isa 26:13), here serving to introduce a remark intended as a restriction of what precedes.[3] The fact of the universal sinful corruption of man, expressed indirectly in Ecc 7:28, is here to be so far restricted that this corruption is not to be considered as innate in humanity through a divine agency, but as brought into the world by mans own guilt.That God hath made man upright. , upright, good, integer; comp. Gen 1:26 f.; Gen 5:1; Gen 9:6; Wis 2:23.But they have sought out many inventions. are not useless subtleties, (Ewald), but, as the contrast to the idea of teaches us: mal artes, tricks, evil artifices, conceits.
4. Second strophe, Introduction, Ecc 8:1.Of the rarity and preciousness of wisdom.Who is as the wise man? This is no triumphant question, induced, or occasioned by that lucky finding in the last verse of the preceding chapter (Hitzig), but simply an introduction to what follows, by which true wisdom is to be declared a rare treasure of difficult attainment, just as in Ecc 7:23; Ecc 8:16 f.In , the usually contracted form is again expanded, in accordance with a custom often occurring in later authors;[4] comp. Eze 40:25; Eze 47:22; 2Ch 10:7; 2Ch 25:10, etc.And who knoweth the interpretation of a thing; Zckler, of the word, ()[5] namely, of the following assertion, which emphasizes the great work of wisdom according to its influence on the physical well-being and morally just demeanor of men. , a Chaldaic word[6] (comp. Dan 2:4 ff., Dan 2:24 ff.; Dan 4:6; Dan 4:15), holding the same relation to the synonymous as to .A mans wisdom maketh his face to shine. That is, it imparts to him a cheerful soul and this on account of the fortunate and satisfactory relations into which it places him. The same figure is found in Num 6:25; Psa 4:7; Job 29:24.And the boldness of his face shall be changed. is to be explained without doubt according to expressions , Prov. 7:13; 21:39; or Deu 28:50; Dan 8:23, and signifies, therefore, that repulsive harshness and stiffness of the features which are a necessary result of a coarse, unamiable, and selfish heart (not exactly boldness, as Dderlein, Dewette, and Gesenius translate, or displeasure, as Knobel, Grimm, and Vaihinger). It is therefore the civilizing, softening and morally refining influence of true wisdom on the soul of man, that the author has in view, and which, according to the question in the beginning of the verse, he describes as something mysterious and in need of explanation, and which he explains, partly at least, by the subsequent precepts regarding wise conduct in a civil sphere. Ewalds comprehension of the passage is in sense not materially different from ours: And the brightness of his countenance is doubledbut this is in opposition to the usual signification of as well as that of , which can hardly be rendered to double. The explanations of the septuagint, resting on a different punctuation, instead of give a widely different sense , which gave rise to that of Luther: But he who is bold, is malignant; and Hitzig, in conjunction with Zirkel (and the Vulgate) reads and thus obtains the sense, and boldness disfigureth the countenance. But the word alone hardly means boldness, and the change adopted in the punctuation appears the more unnecessary since the sense resulting from it brings the assertion in the last clause into contrast with the one before it, which is in decided opposition to the connection.
5. Second strophe. Continuation. Ecc 8:2-4. A proper demeanor towards kings the first means of realizing true wisdom.I counsel thee to keep the kings commandment. To supply or , a somewhat harsh ellipse,[7] for which however we may quote parallels in Isa 5:9; Jer 20:10, and elsewhere. Therefore it is unnecessary, with Hitzig, to punctuate I keep the kings commandment (thus the Vulgate). That stands in Ecc 8:5 below in scriptio plena would form no valid objection against the allowableness of this change of the imperative into the participle; for is also found in Ecc 11:4. But, as Elster correctly observes: it would be surprising if Koheleth did not appear here in his usual manner as a teacher who admonishes others, but only as announcing what he has laid down as a principle to himself. To regard the mouth of the king means of course, to render obedience to his commands; comp. Gen 45:21; Exo 17:1; Job 39:27, etc.And that in regard of the oath of God, which thou hast vowed to him, the King. The duty of obedience to worldly authority is here insisted on with reference to loyalty towards God, the heavenly witness to the vow made to the king; comp. Mat 22:21; Rom 13:1-7; 1Pe 2:13-17. These New Testament parallels should have prevented Hengstenberg from endeavoring to cause the king to mean the heavenly King Jehovah, because nominally, the obedience to the heathen lords of the O. T. in general was not enjoined as a religious duty,a remark that is in direct contradiction with passages like Pro 16:10-15; Isa 45:1 ff.; Jer 27:12-13; Jer 29:5-7; Eze 17:12 ff. The conjunction in is not and indeed, but also, adding the remembrance of the assumed oath as an additional motive to the one already contained in the precept. The oath of God is an oath made with an appeal to God as witness (Exo 22:10; 2Sa 21:7; 1Ki 2:43), and here especially such an oath of fidelity to the sovereign, sworn in the presence of God (comp. 2Ki 11:17; Eze 17:12 ff.).
Ecc 8:3. Be not hasty to go out of his sight. The first verb only serves to express an adverbial qualification of the second. The hasty going out from the king is not to indicate an apostacy from him, or a share in rebellious movements (Knobel, Vaihinger), but simply the timid or unsatisfactory withdrawal from his presence, in case he is unfavorably inclined; it is directly the opposite of the standing forbidden in the subsequent clause. Hitzigs opinion, that the king is considered as an unclean heathen, and that the aim of the entire admonition is to counsel against the too strict observance of the Levitical laws of cleanliness in presence of heathen princes, has too little connection with the context, and is in every respect too artificial.Stand not in an evil thing, (Ger., evil word); i.e., when the king speaks an angry word ( ) do not excite his anger still more by foolishly standing still, as if thou couldst by obstinately remaining in thy place compel his favor. Ewald and Elster correctly give the general sense of the admonition as follows: In presence of a king, it is proper to appear modest and yet firm, to show ourselves neither over timid nor obstinate towards him. The Vulgate, Luther, Starke, etc., are less consistent: Stand not in an evil thing, i.e., remain not in evil designs against the king, if you have become involved in such;Hengstenberg gives the same. Vaihinger: Do not appear in an evil thing. And thus finally Hitzig: Stand not at an evil command [i.e., even though the king should command an evil thing, thou must do it, as Doeg, 1Sa 22:18], a translation which rests on the erroneous supposition that the author presents as speaking, in Ecc 8:2-4, an opponent of his teachings, a defender of a base worldly expediency and a false servility.For he doeth whatever pleaseth him. This formula serves in other places to show the uncontrolled power of God as ruler of the world (Jon 1:14; Job 23:13) but must here be necessarily accepted in a relative sense, as an emphatic warning against the fearful wrath of a monarch who is all-powerful, at least in his own realm; comp. Pro 16:14; Pro 19:12; Pro 20:2.
Ecc 8:4 completes the last clause of Ecc 8:3.Where the word of a king is there is power. here, and in Ecc 8:8, need not be considered as an adjective; it can quite as easily express the substantive sense of ruler, commander, as in Dan 3:2-3 (Chaldaic).And who may say to him, What doest thou ? That is, who can utter an objection to his ordinances and commands ? An expression like that at the close of the preceding verse, which is elsewhere only used in glorification of divine power (Job 9:12; Isa 45:9; Dan 4:32; Wis 12:12), but which therefore justifies neither Hengstenbergs nor Hahns reference of the passage to God as the heavenly King, according to Hitzigs assertion: We have here the servility of an opponent of the king, introduced by the author as speaking in a style which usually indicates the omnipotence of God.
6. Second Strophe. Conclusion. Ecc 8:5-8. Admonition to submit to the existing arrangements of this life, all of which have God as their final author.Whoso keepeth the commandment shall feel no evil thing. the commandment, is undoubtedly the same as , Ecc 8:4, therefore not the Divine law (Vaihinger, Hahn, Hengstenberg, etc.), but the law of earthly authority as the Divine representative. The feeling no evil thing ( ) most probably signifies the remaining distant from evil counsels, taking no part in rebellious enterprises (Knobel, Vaihinger, etc.), so that, therefore, here expresses a sense different from that in verse 3 above. Yet another explanation of the language, and one consistent with the context, is as follows: He experiences no misfortune, remains protected from the punishment of transgressing the laws (Elster, Hengstenberg). But Heiligstedt, on the contrary, is wrong (comp. Ewald): he pays no attention to the evil that is done to him, and does not grieve about the injustice that he suffers, but bears it with equanimity; and also Hitzig: the keeper of the commandment (the servile slave of tyrants) does not first consider an evil command of his superior, in so far as it is morally evil, but executes it blindly, and thus commits a sin at the bidding of a higher power; the wise man, on the contrary, etc.a declaration which stands and falls with the previously quoted artificial understanding of Ecc 8:2-4 as antagonistic in speech.[8]And a wise mans heart discerneth both time and judgment.That is, the wise man knows that for every cvil attempt there comes a time of judgment; see Ecc 8:6. This explanation alone, which is that of the Septuagint [ ] is in accordance with the text; one needs think as little of the judgment which awaits all men, especially wicked princes and tyrants, as of the appointed time of existence of all civil ordinances [Elster], or of the proper time and authority to do any thing, or not (Hahn). Ecc 8:6. For the first clause compare Ecc 3:17.Therefore the misery of man is great upon him.That is, on him who unwisely disregards the important truth that there is a time and judgment for every purpose, and therefore takes part in rebellious undertakings against the king; a heavy misfortune visits him as a well-deserved punishment, and he falls a victim of his foolish effort to struggle against the Divinely sanctioned ordinances of this world.[9] Ecc 8:7. For he knoweth not that which shall be. He knows not the issue of the undertakings in which he has thoughtlessly allowed himself to be involved; and because the future is veiled to us men, he cannot see what consequences they may have, and how weighty may be the destinies that it entails upon him.For who can tell him when it shall be ?(Ger., how it shall be).Therefore he is not only ignorant of future destinies in themselves, but does not even know their how, the manner of their entrance. Herzfeld and Hitzig say: When it shen it shall bem, etc. But no where else in this book signifies when, not even in Ecc 4:17; Ecc 5:4, where it is to be taken as conditional; and the idea of time is by no means in harmony with the passage. Ecc 8:8. There is no man that hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit. here is different from that in Ecc 11:4-5,[10] where it clearly signifies wind (comp. Pro 30:4); it must here be taken in a sense very usual in the O. T., that of breath of life, spirit; comp. Ecc 3:19-21. [11] The meaning of the following clause is most nearly allied to this, and that we find and not in proves nothing in favor of the contrary acceptation of Hitzig, Hahn, etc.; for the author denies the ability of men to control the breath of life, and purposely in the most general way, in order to show, in the strongest manner, his unconditional dependence on God [just as in the following clause he has the very general and not –And there is no discharge in that war.That is, as little as the law of war, with its inexorable severity, grants a furlough to the soldier before the battle, just so little can a man escape the law of death which weighs on all, and just so unconditionally must he follow when God calls him hence by death.Neither shall wickedness deliver those that are given to it.Lit., its possessors; comp. Ecc 7:12; and for the sentence, Pro 10:2; Pro 11:4, etc. This clause clearly contains the principal thought of the verse, as prepared by the three preceding clauses, and which here makes an impressive conclusion of the whole admonition begun in verse 2 concerning disobedience and disloyalty towards authority.
Ecc 8:7. Third Strophe. First half. Ecc 8:9-13. The many iniquities, oppressions and injustices that occur among men, often remain a long time unpunished, but find, at last, their proper reward, as a proof that God rules and judges justly.All this have I seen.A transition formula, serving as an introduction to what follows, as in Ecc 7:23. To see is here equivalent to observing through experience, and all this refers, in the first place, to Ecc 8:5-8, and then to every thing from Ecc 7:23 onward.And applied my heart unto every work.For comp. Ecc 1:13.The infinitive absolute with copula prefixed indicates an action contemporaneous with the main verb. For what follows comp. Ecc 1:14; Ecc 2:17; Ecc 4:3, etc.There is a time when one man rules over another to his own hurt.These words clearly form an explanation to what precedes: every work that is done under the sun; and they therefore more closely designate the object of the authors observation to be a whole epoch or series of oppressions of men by tyrants.The words are usually regarded as an independent sentence: There is a time wherein, etc.; or, sometimes, or, at times, a man rules, etc. (Vulgate, Luther, Vaihinger, Hengstenberg, etc.). But the word alone is not equivalent to there is a time, or sometimes; and to refer the pronoun in to the first (to his own hurt, i.e., to the hurt of the tyrant) is not in harmony with what follows. Also Knobels explanation: truly I have also seen tyrants who practiced evil unpunished through whole eras, seems quite unfitting, because it anticipates Ecc 8:10, and introduces into the text the word truly that is in no wise indicated.
Ecc 8:10. And so I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone (to rest). lit.: and under such circumstances,[12] comp. Est 4:16. The wicked, of whom it is here affirmed that they were buried and went to rest, i.e., they received a distinguished and honorable burial [comp. Isa. 4:19; Jer 22:19; and also Eccles. Ecc 6:3] are the same as those named in Ecc 8:9, who rule over others to their hurt, and are therefore tyrannical oppressors and violent rulers. lit.: they entered in, namely, to rest, an abbreviation of the full form which is found in Isa 57:2.Gone from the place of the holy.[Zcklek : But went far from the place of the holy.]The wicked are clearly here no longer the subject, but as in the following clause, those who did righteously, whose undeservedly sad fate the author well depicts in contrast with that of the former. Therefore the place of the holy from which they wandered afar [, as in Isa 26:14; Zep 3:18; Job 28:4] is the grave, the honorable burial place which these just ones must fail to obtain; to refer this expression to Jerusalem (Hitzig), or to the sacred courts of the leaders of the people (Knobel), or to the community of the saints (Hengstenberg), is all arbitrary, and opposed to the context. , they wandered, they went, does not, of course, mean a wandering of the souls of the unburied after death, but simply [in contrast to that word ] the wandering or being carried to another resting place than that holy place, the burial in a grave neither sacred nor honorable. Hitzigs emendation, they pass away, is as unnecessary as the view of Ewald, Elster, Vaihinger, etc., that the Piel is here synonymous with the Hiphil as though the sense were I saw them driven away, castout from the holy place.[13]And they were forgotten in the city where they had so done (Zckler: who there justly acted).For to do right, to act uprightly, comp. 2Ki 7:9 : for being forgotten in the city, i.e., in their own place of residence [not in Jerusalem, as Hitzig declares], Comp. Ecc 6:4; Pro 10:7; Psa 73:19-20. Instead of the Septuagint, Vulgate, and twenty-three manuscripts had and they were praised; but this reading appears clearly to be an emendation, and would render necessary this grammatically inadmissible translation: and they were Praised in the city, as if they had acted justly.This is also vanity.That is, also this unequal distribution of destiny in human life, is an example of the vanity pervading man controlling all earthly relations; comp. Ecc 2:26; Ecc 4:14; Ecc 4:16; Ecc 7:6, etc.
Ecc 8:11. Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily.Because speedy justice is not executeda very common reason for the increase crime and wickedness. [14] originally a Persian word [ancient Persian, patigama, modern Per. paigam, Armenian patkam]; lit., something that has happened or taken place, and, therefore, command, edict, sentence; comp. Est 1:20. Since in this passage, as in the Chaldaic sections of Ezra and Daniel (e.g., Eze 4:17; Dan 3:16; Dan 4:14), the word is always treated a masculine, we should have expected instead of But comp. the examples of the masculine quoted by Ewald, 74, gr., which, in later authors, are used as feminine.Therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in him to do evil.Therefore they venture on evil without any hesitation; comp. Ecc 9:3; Est 7:5; Mat 15:19.
Ecc 8:12-13. In spite of the universal and ever-increasing prevalence of evil over justice and righteousness, hitherto depicted, the wicked at last find their deserved reward, and oppressed innocence does not perish.Though a sinner do evil a hundred times. does not here signify because (Hitzig), but although, considering that, as does sometimes (Lat. quod si). Comp. Lev 4:22; Deu 11:27; Deu 18:22; Ewald, 362, b. Before supply And his days be prolongednamely, in sinning. with shows that this verb is not to be supplemented by , as in the following verse.Yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God. , yet, makes here a strong contrast. Koheleth represents the idea of just retribution as something certain and lasting, although experience seems so strongly to teach the contrary, and consequently as a conviction that does not rest on empirical observation, but on direct religious faith. There is not expressed in this verse, as some commentators suppose, the thought of a retribution in after life, but it must be confessed that the standpoint of observation on which Koheleth here places himself could easily lead to this conclusion, although it is not here drawn (Elster).Which fear before him.Not, because they fear before him; is here really a relative pronoun, pointing out the conformity of the conduct of the God-fearing to their designation as such. Comp. 1Ti 5:3 : .But it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his days.This denial of long life to the wicked does not contradict what is said in Ecc 8:12; for there the question was not of long life, but of prolonged sinning.Which are as a shadow; because he feareth not before God.[Zckler: He is as a shadow who feareth not before God.] We have had the same figure in Ecc 6:12. The Vulgate, as well as most modern commentators, are correct in not joining , with the Masoretic accentuation, to what precedes [thus also Luther, Vaihinger, Hengstenberg; and as a shadow will not live long], but to what follows [Vulg. transeunt].
8. Third Strophe. Conclusion. Ecc 8:14-15. Since the unequal distribution of human destiny points to the futile character of all earthly occurrences and conditions, we must so much the more enjoy present happiness, and profit by it with a contented mind.There is a vanity which is done upon the earth.See Ecc 8:10 and Ecc 3:16. That the lots of the just and the wicked are frequently commingled and interchanged in this world, seems to the Preacher as vanity, i.e., as belonging to the evil consequences of the human fall; but it does not, therefore, make on him an especially bitter and gloomy impression, as Elster supposes. Comp. Hengstenberg: If there were righteous men such as there should be, wholly righteous, then the experience here given would certainly be in a high degree alarming. But since sin is also indwelling in the just, since they deserve punishment and need watchful care, since they can so easily slide into by-paths and fall into a mercenary worldliness, the shock must disappear for those who really dwell in righteousness. These latter are often severely disturbed by the fact here presented to view, but it is for them only a disturbance. The definitive complaint regarding this comes only from those who without claim or right count themselves among the just. And it is clear that the equality of result for the evil and just is only an external and partial one. To those whom God loves, every thing must be for the best, and the final issue separates the evil from the good.
Ecc 8:15. Then I commended mirth, etc.[15]Comp. the exegetical remarks on Ecc 2:24; Ecc 3:22; Ecc 5:19.For that shall abide with him of his labour the days of his life.Lit., That clings to him, etc., i.e., that and that only becomes truly his; comp. in Ecc 3:22; Ecc 5:19, which is synonymous in sense. The optative meaning of (Hitzig: that may cling to him; Herzfeld: that may accompany him, etc.), is unnecessary and runs counter to the analogy of those earlier parallels.
DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL
(With Homiletical Hints)
The warnings against seduction through the snares and amorous arts of women, concerning rebellion against authority, and wicked oppression and violence, are quite dissimilar in their nature, and hang but loosely together. For in the first of these warnings the attention of the author is principally directed to the depraved nature of woman as the originator and principal representative of the ruin of man through sin; in the second, it is less the Divine necessity that is made especially emphatic, than the human utility and profitableness in the obedience to be rendered to kings; and in the third, the principal object of attention is not the wicked conduct of sinners in itself, but the fixed, certain, and just retribution of God for this conduct, together with the useful lesson which the good man is to draw therefrom. The questions concerning the origin, goal, and remedy of human depravity, [the most important problems in anthropology], are in this way touched, but by no means exhaustively treated; and the indicated solutions reveal a certain one-sidedness on account of the brevity of the illustration. It appears, at least, in Ecc 7:28, as if the female sex were thoroughly and without exception evil, and the first woman was represented as the sole originator of the sin of humanity; and just so it seems as if the remedy against sin and its bad effects were mainly (Ecc 8:2 ff.) unconditional obedience to earthly authority; and then, again, it would appear (Ecc 8:15) that a frivolous and thoughtless joyousness were recommended. But that this is mere appearance, is proved by the connection of each of the respective passages. As in Ecc 7:29, not women alone, but sinning humanity as a whole, are presented as the destroyers of the originally upright, pure, and God-like nature [corresponding to the words of Paul, Rom 5:12]; not less in Ecc 8:2 ff. is the duty of obedience to authority to be, from the beginning, Divinely influenced, and therefore subordinated to the higher duty of obedience towards God [corresponding with Act 4:19]. And finally, the joy recommended in Ecc 8:15 appears clearly as the joy of one fearing God [comp. Ecc 8:12-13], and consequently it no more forms an exclusive contrast to the rejoicing with trembling of Psa 2:11 than it contradicts the Apostolic admonition: Rejoice in the Lord always (Php 4:4). In short, it is every where the conduct of the truly wise man, who, as such, is also the God-fearing man, to which the Preacher directs us, and in which he gets a view of the true ideal in the sphere of ethical anthropology (comp. Ecc 7:23-25; Ecc 8:1; Ecc 8:5). Thence is drawn for a collective homiletical treatment of this section the following theme : the truly wise man fears God, and guards himself as well against unchastity as against the disloyalty and injustice of this world. Or, the truly wise man in conflict with the enticements of this world, as he meets them first in the cunning of women, secondly, in the desire of rebellion, and thirdly, in the wickedness and arrogant violence of tyrants.
homiletical hints on separate passages
Ecc 7:23-25. Geier:Our knowledge is fragmentary: the more we learn, the more we perceive how far we are removed from true wisdom, Sir 51:21 f.; 1Co 13:9.Hansen:No one on earth has the ability and skill to acquire a perfect knowledge of the works of God. They remain unfathomably deep and hidden from our eyes.We must exert all the powers of our soul to discover the difference between wisdom and folly.Starke:Depend not on your own strength in Christianity. You imagine that you make progress, but in reality you retrograde, and lose, in your spiritual arrogance, that which you had already acquired (2Jn 1:8).The best teachers are those who teach to others what they themselves have learned by experience.
Tbingen Bible:Man was created in innocence, justice and holiness, and this is the image of God, that he lost after the fall, but after which he should again strive with all earnestness.Hengstenberg:After the fall, man forgot to remain in a receptive relation, which, in respect to the is the only proper position; he chases after schemes of his presumptuous thoughts. The only means of becoming free from so dire a disease, and of being delivered from the bonds of his own thoughts and phantoms, is again to return to Divine subjection, and renouncing all his own knowledge, to permit himself to be taught of God.
Ecc 8:1. Zeyss :Impenetrable as is the human heart in itself, it is nevertheless often betrayed by the countenance.Starke:The innocent man looks happy and secure. He who cherishes injustice in the heart looks at no one cheerfully nor rightly.Hengstenberg:When, by the transforming power of wisdom, the heart of flesh has taken the place of the heart of stone, and inward flexibility and obedience that of terror in presence of God and His commandments, it becomes also evident in the countenance.
Ecc 8:2; Ecc 8:6. Luther:It is enough for you to do so in the state, that you should obey the kings commands, and listen to him who is ordained of God. Here you see how civil obedience is comprehended in obedience to God. So Paul would have servants obey their masters, not as submitting to men, but as to God.Melanchthon:Thus is obedience ordained. Obey the Divine voice first; then the king commanding things not repugnant to the Divine law.This will be in conformity with the rule given Act 4:19.Starke (Ecc 8:3):The powerful ones of this world have among men no higher one over them, to whom they must give an account, but in heaven there is One higher than the highest. Wisdom of Solomon Ecc 6:2-4.(Ecc 8:5): He who keeps the commandments of God will, for the sake of God and his conscience, also obey the salutary commands of authority, Col 3:23.Hengstenberg (Ecc 8:5):The wise heart knows well that as certainly as God will judge justly in His own time, so certainly also can he not be really and lastingly unhappy who keeps the commandments, and therefore has God on his side.(Ecc 8:6): With all his power, man is nevertheless not independent, but is subjected to the heavy blows of human destiny. Thus all men will be unable to place any impediment to the execution of the justice of God for the good of His children.
Ecc 8:7-8. Hieronymus (Ecc 8:8): We are not to mourn, though often oppressed by the unjust and powerful; since all these things come to an end in death, and the proud potentate himself, after all his tyrannical cruelties, cannot retain the soul when taken away by death.Cramer (Ecc 8:7):It is vain that we anxiously trouble ourselves about the progress and issue of things to come; therefore we should abandon our prying desire. Psa 37:5.Geier:The last conflict and struggle is the hardest and most dangerous; but a pious Christian should not be terrified at it; for the conquest of Jesus over death will become his own through faith; temporal death is for him only a dissolution, a passing away in peace.
Melanchthon:This question tortures all minds; so that many who see the prosperity of the wicked, and the misfortunes of the just, begin to think there is no Providence. It is the excelling strength of faith, that it is not broken by such spectacles, but retains the true cognition of God, and waits patiently for the judgment.Osiander:It does not become us to dictate to God how He shall rule the world. Let it satisfy us that God rules, and will finally bring to light the justice of His judgment.Because God delays a while in the punishment of sin, men falsely convince themselves that their wickedness will go wholly unpunished, Sir 5:4-5.J. Lange:The children of God consider the patience of the Lord their salvation [2Pe 3:15]; whilst the wicked consider this patience as a privilege to sin the more boldly (Rom 6:1). But however happy they may esteem themselves, they nevertheless die unblessed, and their happiness is changed into eternal shame.
Ecc 8:14]. and 15. Berleb. Bible: Joy is a godly cheerfulness and serenity of soul; since the just man, though he may suffer from the vanities of this world, which are common to all, keeps his soul free from vain cares, calm through faith in God, and hence cheerful and ready in the performance of its duties; so that he eats, drinks and rejoices, i.e., enjoys what God gives him, in a calm, cheerful, and fitting manner.Hengstenberg:[See previous exegetical illustrations to Ecc 8:14.]
Footnotes:
[1] [The confusion arises here from disregarding the meditative, soliloquizing, exclamatory style of this book,in a word, its poetical character. These divisions into the practical and theoretical regard it too much as an abstract ethical or didactic treatise, with its logical and rhetorical arrangement. This is at war with its subjective, emotional aspect, and hence much forced and false interpretations. See the remarks p. 172 in the Introduction to the rhythmical version. The most literal rendering is the best, since it preserves this broken, interjectional, ejaculatory style, in which the writer is giving vent to his emotions at the thought of the great past, and how small human knowledge is in respect to it. He expresses it as he feels it, in fragmentary sighs, and repetitions, or as one who says it over and over to himself without thinking of others, or of any didactic use, and yet in this very way, making the most vivid and practical impression.
O that I might be wise, I said; but it was far from me; Far off! The past, what is it? Deepa deepO who can find?
There is strong emotion in the paragogic or optative form of . It expresses the most intense and longing desire, but with little hope of knowing the great secret of the long past, much less of the far stretching future. The interjections used in rendering really inhere in the style. What should we think of an attempt to lay off Youngs Night Thoughts in strophes of the practical and the theoretical? And yet it is fully as capable of such divisions as this most emotional poem of Koheleth. In the Hebrew, is accentually joined with , but it is rhythmical rather than logical, and would not prevent from being an interrogative pronoun: , whatthat which was? or, that which was, what is it? As though he had been going to say merely, far off the past, but the emotion throws it into the more broken or exclamatory utterance, and then he adds: and deepdeepwho can find it? The as personal interrogative, corresponds to the general interrogative .
In the expression, O let me be wise, we have at once suggested to us the passage 1Ki 3:5-12, Solomons dream at Gibeon, the Lords appearing unto him, and his earnest prayer for a a wise and understanding heart. With all his errors the love of wisdom ( and ) had been a passion from his earliest youth,wisdom speculative as well as practical,wisdom not only to govern so great a people, and to discern, ethically, between good and evil, but to understand, if it were possible, the ways of God, and the great problem of humanity. Rightly considered, this strong desire, thus expressed, is a special mark of the Solomonic authorship. O let me be wise, I said. He said it in his dream at Gibeon.
DeepdeepO who shall find it! Like other passages of Scripture, this is capable of an ever expanding sense. We may think of the earthly past, so much of it historically unknown; but the style of thought in Koheleth carries the mind still farther back to the great past before the earth was (Pro 8:23),to the , 1Co 2:7, before the ages of ages, or worlds of worlds. There are two views here that may be pronounced exceeding narrow. The one is that of the Scriptural interpreter who recognizes no higher chronology to the whole universe than a few thousand of our sun-measured years. To this he adds six solar days, and then slides off into a blank antepast eternity, a chronological nothingness, we may say, where Deity dwelt, had ever dwelt, , without time, without creative manifestationall worlds, whether of space or time, and all ranks of existence below the Divine, having had their origination in this single week (as measured by earthly revolutions) that he assigns to them. The other view, still more narrowfor if is an infinite narrownessis the one held by some modern thinkers of high repute. It is that of an eternal physical development, or evolution, carried on through an infinite past of duration, ever evolving progressively, and yet with nothing more or higher evolved, ever evolved, than the very finite and imperfect state of things we now behold,man the highest product of this eternal evolution that has ever been reached in any part of the universe,man as yet the etre suprememan, too, lately evolved, or within a few thousand years, from some of the animal classes just below him. All before is a descending inclined plane, with an uninterrupted evenness, and an infinitesimal angle, falling away lower and still lower forever-more, in the infinite retrocession from the present advanced state of things!!
In contradistinction to the meagre poverty of both these views stands the Scriptural malkuth kol olamim (Psa 145:13) (1Ti 1:17)a kingdom of all eternities, with its ages of ages, its worlds of worlds, its ascending orders of being, its mighty dispensations embracing all grades of evolution in the physical, and an unimaginable variety in the holy administrations of Him who styles Himself Jehovah tsebaoth, the Lord of hosts. This alone leaves the mind free in its speculative roamings, allowing it to compete with any philosophy in this respect, whilst binding it ever to an adoring recognition of the one absolute and infinite personality, according to whose will all things are, and were, created.
The Targum explains here of the great unknown past, regarding it as equally mysterious with the secrets of the unknown future: It is too far off for the sons of men to know that which was from the days of eternity. Rashi and Aben Ezra give substantially the same interpretation, with a like reference to the creation and the creative times: What is above, what is below, what is before, what is after,it is deep, deep, too deep for our power to think. The impassioned impressiveness of Koheleths language amply justifies such a style of interpretation.T. L.]
[2] [Zcklers rendering, wickedness as folly, foolishness as madness, weakens the sense. It is more impassioned without the conjunctions, or any other particles to break its earnest and hurried style: wickedness, presumption [stubbornness, as may mean], yea, stupidity, madness, all given in a running list:
To seek out wisdom, reason,sin to know
Presumption, folly, vain impiety.T. L.]
[3][See text note on .T. L.]
[4][This is undoubtedly meant as proof of the late authorship of Koheleth, but it amounts to no more than this, namely, that the old manuscript of Ecclesiastes, whose copies have come down to us, was made by a scribe writing from the ear as another read aloud, in consequence of which he has sometimes given in full a letter known to exist etymologically, though lost in sound, as in this case; whilst, on the other hand, and more frequently, he has given it as abbreviated is sound, like for , or for , though generally written in the full old etymological form; and again, in other cases, he has written a like sounding letter in place of the true one, as for , and other similar cases. The same remark is applicable to Ezekiel, and the very instances that Zcklerquotes. They are evidences of late chirography in manuscripts, but are little to be relied on as proofs, or disproofs, of original authorship.T. L.]
[5][This would require the article, or the demonstrative pronoun, or both: .T. L.]
[6][No more Chaldaic than it is Hebrew. It is merely a variation of orthography for the like sounding word , Gen 40:8. Who knows how early the change to the sibilant took place? as there are no other examples of either form between Moses and Solomon, or between Solomon and Daniel?T. L.]
[7][See text note.T. L.]
[8][Among all these conflicting interpretations, it may be suggested that the best way is to take Ecc 8:5 as a qualification of the positiveness and strictness of the previous precepts: the ordinary man who simply yields literal and passive obedience, will be safe in so doing; but the wise man will use his wisdom in judging as to the manner of doing the command, or of modifying, avoiding, or, it may be, of resisting, as Daniel did. This mode of qualifying, or partially retracting, a precept that seems general and exclusive, is not uncommon with Koheleth. Comp. Ecc 9:11 and al. Such is in general the idea of Stuart, especially as to the last clause, though he interprets in the first, as meaning, he (who obeys) will have no concern about the evil command; that is, will not trouble himself about its rectitude.T. L.]
[9][We cannot help regarding this as a forcing the text into the support of the extreme monarchical doctrine of passive obedience, notwithstanding the qualification adverted to in the previous note. There is, too, an omission, unusual for Zckler, of all comment on the first part of Ecc 8:6, which contains not only the connection with what precedes, but furnishes the key to what follows. The heart of the wise man will acknowledge time and reason (Ecc 8:5): for there is time and reason to every thing, although the misery of man (the oppression, the evil rule, under which he suffers) be so great upon him [ implying something laid upon him like a heavy burden). It is all made clear by rendering the second although, as adversative to the firsta frequent sense of the particle in this book, as is generally shown by the context. It is a strong and passionate assertion: The world is not all confusion; there is time and reason; they will appear at last, though misery so abounds; therefore be patient; watch and wait. Obedience is indeed inculcated to lawful (not merely monarchical) authority, but it is also intimated that it is not to be wholly passive, unreasoning, and blind.T. L.]
[10][There is precisely the same argument for rendering it spirit in chap.Ecc 11:5 (the way of the spirit), as exists for it here. See excursus on that passage, p. 147.T. L.]
[11][Perhaps there is nothing, that shows the unspirituality of some commentators more than their obstinate determination to render wind, and often in utter defiance of the context, as in Gen 1:2, and in such places as these.T. L.]
[12] [ is the particle of illustration: and in such a case, or, taken in the connection: and so it was. See the Metrical Version
Twas when I saw the wicked dead interred.T. L.]
[13][Zcklers version here, which is substantially that of Hitzig, and even of Geier, seems very forced. How is he to get the sense of wandering far, or of being driven away, from ? Then, again, the rendering they who had done rightly, and making it the subject of , are both unwarranted. Stuart well says that the makkeph in shows that the Masorites regarded as the usual adverb so, and therefore joined it closely to the verb as simply qualifying. The references of Zckler and Hitzig do not bear them out, and there cannot be found a clear case in the Bible where is used absolutely for justice. There are two objections to the finding in this phrase the subject of ; one is the separation it makes between it and ; the second is its coming so late after its verb, making a very unusual Hebrew construction in keeping the sense so long suspended. It seems quite clear that and have the same subjectnot that a sudden change is unexampled in Hebrew, but because these two verbs so uniformly go together in similar expressions; as in Ecc 1:4 , generation goes, and generation comes; also Ecc 6:4, , comes in vanity, goes away in darkness. So here there must be for both the same subject; but is it the wicked, mentioned above, or men generally, not personally or pronominally expressed, because it so readily suggests itself from the mention of burial,they, the mourners, real or pretended,they who form the procession (; see remarks on this word in piel, p. 85), who go about the streets, Ecc 12:5, where includes both going to and coming from. According to this, there is, indeed, a change of subject from that of the previous clause, but this is far from being unexampled in Hebrew, even without notice; as in Psa 49:19 : For he blesses himself in life, and they will praise [] thee, that is, men will praise thee, when thou doest well to thyself. Here, however, the personal subject is so familiar that it is easily understood, and its omission is on that very account all the more impressive: I saw the wicked buried, and from (or to and from) the holy place [the place of burial],they came and went [men came and went]; then straight were they forgotten, that is, the wicked rulers were forgotten. The coming back to these as the old subject, after the mention of the funeral procession, seems very natural. The crowd disperses, the hired mourners go about the streets; it is all over; and soon are they forgotten in the city where they thus had done,where they had ruled to their own dishonor, only to be hated, and at last, after an empty funeral pomp, to be consigned to oblivion. In the description of a scene so well understood, the formal insertion of the logical subject would have made it much less graphic. See Metrical Version.T. L.]
[14][On this word see remarks in the note appended to Zcklers Introduction, p. 33.T. L.]
[15] [It was then I commended mirth, etc.; that is, under such a view of mankind and their destiny. See the text note. The conjunction in connects by showing the time and reason. It is very important as showing that the Epicurean aspect Koheleth sometimes exhibits was in connection with, and conditioned upon, such discouraging and gloomy views of human destiny as those just mentioned. And this explains the , in what follows, as the matter or language of the false commendation (quod, ), that there was no other good to man,or then I praised mirth, etc. (saying), that there was no good to man, etc.; and so of what follows: and that this only remains to him, etc. It is all dependent on , as the subject matter of the Epicurean commendation. Zckler omits all remarks on here, and the connection of , although it is so important.
Twas then that pleasure I extolled:
How that there was no good to man beneath the sun,
Except to eat and drink, and [here] his joy to find,
And this alone attends him in his toil,
During all the days, etc.
Compare the Arabic res residua, as used in the Koran to denote the portion either of the pious in the life to comes, or of the wicked pleasure-seekers in this world.T. L.]
Fuente: A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical by Lange
CONTENTS
The Preacher is still following up his favourite discourse of the vanity of human life, through this chapter. Under various images he showeth the disappointments of men, by ways of directing the heart to wisdom.
Ecc 8:1
Who is as the wise man? and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? a man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the boldness of his face shall be changed.
The question with which this Chapter opens, cannot fail, I should think, to bring to the gracious Reader’s recollection, Him who is indeed Wisdom itself, and in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Precious Jesus! thy face did shine with a lustre infinitely surpassing that of Moses, when in the mount of transfiguration, and before Pilate thou didst witness a good confession. And who shall say what glory beamed from thy countenance, when those who came to apprehend thee, in the garden, fell backward on the ground before thee? Oh! Lord! grant me, like thy disciples, amidst all the darkness concerning thee around, to behold thy glory, which thou dost manifest in grace, that I may be of the happy number that believe in thee to the saving of the soul; Exo 34:29 ; Mat 17:2 ; 1Ti 6:13 ; Joh 2:11Joh 2:11 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Ecc 8:8
Compare Ruskin’s Time and Tide (Letter xxiv.) for an application of the words, There is no discharge in that war; also Kipling’s The Five Nations, pp. 185 f.
References. VIII. 8. S. H. Tying, American Pulpit of Today, vol. i. p. 623. VIII. 10. Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. iv. No. 200.
Ecc 8:11 . Cf. Ecc 7:7 , etc.
Swift once asked Delany whether the ‘corruptions and villanies of men in power did not eat his flesh and exhaust his spirits?’ ‘No,’ said Delany. ‘Why, how can you help it?’ said Swift. ‘Because,’ replied Delany, ‘I am commanded to the contrary fret not thyself because of the ungodly.’ That, like other wise maxims, is capable of an ambiguous application. As Delany took it, Swift might perhaps have replied that it was a very comfortable maxim for the ungodly. His own application of Scripture is different. It tells us, he says, in his proposal for using Irish manufactures, that ‘oppression makes a wise man mad’. If, therefore, some men are not mad, it must be because they are not wise. In truth, it is characteristic of Swift that he could never learn the great lesson of submission even to the inevitable. His rage, which could find no better outlet, burnt inwardly and drove him mad.
Leslie Stephen’s Swift, pp. 165, 166.
Compare Sterne’s Sermons (No. XXXIII.).
References. VIII. 11. A. Maclaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture Ecclesiastes, p. 367. VIII. 12. Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. iii. No. 1487. VIII. 16. A. W. Momerie, Agnosticism, p. 252.
Fuente: Expositor’s Dictionary of Text by Robertson
Some Striking Views of Human Nature
Ecclesiastes 7-8
We are still in Coheleth’s memorandum-book. There is little or no connection between these scattered sentences. To read them is like stepping upon stones that have been laid in a brook, rather than crossing a well-built bridge.
There is a mournful tone in this seventh chapter. It is full of dyspeptic and disagreeable remarks. Cypress shadows lie over it, with hardly a breeze to disturb them and to let the light twinkle and sparkle between the dark bars. Coheleth is in a bilious mood to-day; his curtains are drawn, his lamp is lit early, all relish has gone out of his mouth, and he listens with a kind of grim joy, as if he heard Death clambering up the stair with a Fieri-facias in his hand from the court of Fate. No young heart can read this chapter with any sympathy. It is sprinkled thickly with sentences that an exhausted rou might have written in a mood of semi-bilious penitence. Death is better than birth; mourning is better than feasting; sorrow is better than laughter; the end is better than the beginning; and things generally are odd and stiff, with plenty of disappointment and mockery in them.
It ought not to be true that death is better than life, and that sorrow is better than laughter. This is unnatural, unreasonable, and discreditable. It is like saying that failure is better than success. The purpose of God certainly went out in the direction of joy, light, satisfaction, and rest, when he made man in his own image and likeness. As he himself is God blessed for evermore, so he would that all his loving ones should be as he is, full of joy and full of peace. God has no delight in tears, and a moan is a poor substitute for a hymn. If you set real sorrow against real joy I do not hesitate to teach that joy is better; the fact that sorrow is often far more real than joy, and by its very genuineness it is so much better, is because it moves the very springs of life, it stirs and rouses the soul, it makes men think deeply and long. But what is joy as popularly understood? It is not joy at all; it is a momentary titillation of the nerves; it is a movement of the facial muscles; it is a weird grin a flash a bubble a dream a lie!
For this reason, too, it is better to go to the house of mourning than to the house of feasting. In the house of mourning our best faculties are touched and our deepest sympathies are called into activity, and we get a truer measure of the scope of life. Feasting is physical; it perishes in the using, and the finest wine is ruined by exposure to the air. If the feast were a feast of reason, and of the fat things set upon the table of God, Coheleth would be wrong; it is but a banquet of froth, spread on a table of cloud, and anything that touches the quick of the heart is better than the moth-like wit that scorches and kills itself in the flame of inordinate wine. We ought to see quite as far through the medium of joy as through the medium of sorrow. The look of joy is through the windows of morning, through the gates of the rosy dawn, or through the arch of the perfect noon. The look of sorrow is through the avenues of the clouds, with a star here and there feebly struggling with the blackness of night. Sorrow is a look through tears; joy is a great glad expectancy. Sorrow goes out towards rest, quietness, peace, cessation of trouble; joy goes out on strong and flashing pinions towards higher gladness, purer light, vaster love. It ought not, then, to be true that sorrow is better than laughter.
Yet there is a sense in which Christianity will say that the day of one’s death is better than the day of one’s birth. We are born into the temporary, the disciplinary, the imperfect, but if we are in Christ we die into the eternal, the completed, the restful. Many of the Old Testament expressions have to be completed by New Testament interpretations. When the worldling says the day of one’s death is better than the day of one’s birth, he utters the moan of disappointment and bitterness of soul; but when the Christian uses the selfsame words he seems to open a great golden gate, which swings back upon the infinite land of liberty and summer the glorious heaven of God. A very needful thing it is to remember that the same words have different meanings as used by different men. It is the part of Christianity to take up the mottoes and the maxims of the world, and to set them in a right relation to things eternal; a setting which will sometimes destroy them, and at other times lift them up into new and glowing significance.
A thing wonderful beyond all others is this death-birth. The moment after death! When absent from the body are we present with the Lord? Do we at once throw off all weakness, and stand amongst the angels, strong as they, beautiful in holiness, and complete in satisfaction? Do we bid an eternal farewell to pain the pain which has haunted us like a cruel ghost through the hours of childhood? Do we for ever cease to blunder and stumble? and do our feet take fast hold of the golden streets, never to totter or slip any more? Is the last tear gone, the last sigh spent, the last sin shut out from the purified and ennobled heart? If it be so, who can wonder that the day of death is better than the day of birth, and that the greatest of secrets will reveal the greatest of joys?
So far this chapter has been dark enough. We have walked through it up to this point as through a dark and gruesome night. But the chapter is not all gloom. We get glints of spring light even here, and above all this cold night wind we may hear a note or two of bands and choristers far away, yet quite accessible. As water is valued more in the desert than in the land of pools and streams, so we may set higher store on what we find here in the way of sure and immediate joy than if we had found it in any one of David’s triumphant psalms. “In the day of prosperity be joyful…. God also hath set the one over against the other…. He that feareth God shall come forth of them all…. The excellency of knowledge is, that wisdom giveth life to them that have it.” It seems needless to say that we are to rejoice in the day of prosperity; yet it is not needless: we are not to take our prosperity as we would take medicine; we are not to issue our wedding invitations on black-edged paper. There is little enough true prosperity in life; therefore make the most of it. Men are not to take their brief holidays in a serious light. Sometimes pleasures are very leaden-footed; they are owls that like the night, rather than larks that hail the day with early gladness. Then to help us to make the best of life Coheleth says God hath set the one over against the other. A wonderful piece of mosaic is life! the lights and shadows are marvellously distributed. If your tiled hearth was laid by a cunning hand, was the mosaic of life arranged by chance? You are poor in money, but how rich you are in health! Or you are feeble in health, but how comfortable in circumstances! Or you are poor both in health and circumstance, but see what marvellous spirits you have! You live in a small house, then you have few anxieties; your pleasures are limited, then your account is proportionately small. Truly God hath set the one over against the other. If we take the bright side there is always something to make us humble, and keep us within proper limits. You have magnificent health, but you may suffer from depression of spirits; you have a well-laden table, but you have no appetite; you have boundless information, but no gift of expression: so God hath set the one over against the other. There is a rent in every panoply. There is a crook in every lot. Why? Coheleth answers, “To the end that man should find nothing after him;” literally, to the end that man should have no power over the future. God will not entrust the future with any man. The future is so near, yet so far! What we would give if we knew exactly what would happen to-morrow, or what would be the detailed result of our schemes, or what would be the answer to letters involving our peace, fortune, joy! The future is the very next thing we shall come upon, and yet it spreads out over all the spaces of eternity; it is an hour, yet it is an everlasting duration; it is measurable as a human span, yet it is as illimitable as infinitude! The future is the riddle which vexes us beyond all others, because we feel as if we ought to know an answer which must be simple and easy. Yet how much we owe, both in the way of stimulus and in the way of education, to the mysteriousness of the future! What poetry is there in a straight line? What enjoyment is there on a road which is never bent into curves or broken into undulations? It is expectancy call it hope or fear that gives life a rare interest; hope itself sometimes brings with it a sting of pain, and fear now and again brings with it even something of a weird pleasure. Hope turns the future into a banqueting-house. Ambition forecasts the future with great plans of attack and defence. Fear anticipates the future so as to get from the outlook restraint and discipline. Life that has no future would be but a flat surface, a stiff, awkward monotony, a world without a firmament, a boundless cemetery; but with a future it is a hope, an inspiration, a sweet, gracious promise; it is, too, a terror, for we know not what is behind the cloud, nor can we say what foe or friend will face us at the next corner. We live a good deal in our to-morrows, and thus we spend money which does not fairly belong to us; yet how poor should we be if we could not turn our imagination to some account, and mint our fancies into some little gold to chink in our hands, that we may scare our immediate poverty away! What beautiful drives we have had in the carriage which we are going to buy in a year or two! How often we have laid out the garden which is going to be ours in years to come! We once set up fine houses with broken earthenware, and before we outgrew our jackets and pinafores we had made eternal friendships, and set our proud feet on a conquered and humbled world! And yet the future is always in front of us, a shy but persistent coquette, vouchsafing a smile, but throwing a frown over it; telling us to come on, yet leaving us to topple over an unseen stone, and to fall into an invisible pit, which we could never have discovered had it not first thrown us! The past has become a confused, dull, troubled noise, as of people hastening to and fro in the night-time; but the future is a still small voice, having marvellous whispering power, with a strange mastery over the will, soothing us like a benediction, and anon chilling us like a sigh in a graveyard. The past is a worn road; the future is a world in which all the ways have yet to be made. I would bind you, then, to a high general estimate of the future, as being by the very fact of its being future a high educational influence; an influence that holds you back like a bit in your foaming lips; an influence that sends you forward with the hunger of a great hope, relieved by satisfactions which do but whet the desire they cannot appease. Thank God that there is a future; that there are days far off; that there are clouds floating in the distance, beautiful enough to be the vesture of angels, yet solemn enough to be the sheaths of lightning. So again we come upon Christian interpretations of non-spiritual words. Whilst Coheleth, for the moment representing the thoughtless crowd, dreads the future, and flees away from it as from an enemy, the Christian looks forward to it with a high expectation, and longs for the disclosure of all its beneficent mysteries.
In these chapters Coheleth gives striking views of human nature. He does not speak merely about a man here and there, but about all men. It will be interesting, therefore, to know how so shrewd and frank a man regarded human nature from his standpoint. Some of his sentences sound like divine judgments. Take chapter Ecc 7:20
“For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.”
There is a black thread in the whitest soul. How far does this judgment agree with what we know about ourselves? Are we all gold through and through without one speck of alloy? Are we pure like snow newly fallen on untrodden mountain-tops? We have not been slow to say that there is undoubtedly a great deal of good in man. We are very possibly generous, hopeful, pleasant, neighbourly, well-disposed, but what is there under all that a long way under it? Go into the solemn place where motives are that far-in engine-house, where the subtle power is that moves the whole life, and say whether the devil is not often in that house, stirring up the fire and setting the wheels in motion. Let the holiest man amongst us force this inquiry to decisive issue. You, for example, are a minister of Jesus Christ, and by your very profession you are not unnaturally assumed to be a peculiarly holy man; at least in all your uppermost wishes you cannot but be pure and noble. Now consider that immediately in your neighbourhood there is a rival minister who is supposed to be more popular than you are, to attract a larger share of public attention, and to be carried onward as by a breeze of popular favour to high and substantial success. Now in the sight and fear of God how do you regard such a man? Do you in your very soul rejoice in his honour, and pray secretly that it may be continued and increased? and are you the more prayerful in this direction, and the more earnest in proportion as your own popularity suffers by the fame of your neighbour? Can you bear to see the public turning away from your own church and hastening towards his as if he rather than yourself had a direct message from heaven? Is there no disposition, hardly known to yourself, to mitigate somewhat the blaze of his renown, to suggest that though he is showy he is weak; to point out that although undoubtedly he has some talents he is lamentably deficient in others? These are questions which pierce us all like sharp swords, and they are not to be turned aside as if they were flippant and useless in a great spiritual inquiry. Coheleth allows that there are just men, but he says there is not a single just man that sinneth not; that is to say, his justice is impaired by certain flaws and drawbacks; it is by no means a complete justice; it is a broken, infirm thing, which draws upon itself disapproving criticism, and exposes itself sometimes even to contempt. Now what is it that can reach down to that far depth of evil? It is at this point that we need a voice other than our own, and a revelation which human genius would never have conceived or projected. It is when we are in hell that we most feel our need of heaven. Listen not to the superficial moralists who will tell you that character is an affair of rearrangement, colour, and attitude; but listen with profoundest interest to the evangelical preacher, who assures you that you must be born again, otherwise the kingdom of heaven is an impossibility in your experience.
Here we have another view of human nature:
“Lo, this only have I found, that God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions” ( Ecc 7:29 ).
That is to say, man has lost his perpendicularity, and he has taken out many patents for its restoration. You have seen a wall falling out of square, and have observed how carefully the wall has been shored up lest it should quite fall down. If we could only see the great human heart as God sees it we should see that it has lost its uprightness, and that it is being shored up by inventors and schemers of every name and kind to prevent an utter and final collapse. Human life is a struggle to get back to the moral square, and truly there are many inventions. One form of religion says: Trust everything to me: I will do everything for you: I am the priest of heaven, and in my hands are the keys of the kingdom: confess your sins to me, put yourselves absolutely under my control, do not attempt to form any judgments of your own, and I will see to it that you are properly prepared for heaven. Another form of religion says: Distrust the speaker who has just delivered himself: he is a papist and an impostor, antichrist, the man of sin, the very emissary of Babylon; he seeks men’s souls to destroy them; he would extinguish the right of private judgment, he would depose individual conscience, and substitute priestly counsel and direction: the right way is for every man to think for himself, to make debate a religion, and to fight his way to sound intellectual convictions. Another invention says: Never mind any of the religious speakers who address you: they are all the victims of ghostly superstition; they are wanting in practical sagacity and in thorough grasp of time and space and the whole world of sense: look carefully about you and see how things lie; turn all circumstances to your own advantage as far as you possibly can; cultivate a masterful spirit, overrule and overdrive everything, let the weakest go to the wall, and in all circumstances, night and day, summer and winter, do the best for yourself: that is my common-sense religion, that is my practical philosophy: I am no ghost or spectre, or foolish chattering voice in the dark: I claim to be a messenger of practical common sense, and I tell you to find in the earth all the heaven any man can need. Then what social schemes we have for the amelioration of human affairs: what a tax upon sanitary arrangements, physical conditions; what endeavours to instruct the ignorant, rearrange the relations of capital and labour; and what efforts there are to turn political economy into a species of religion! What is the meaning of all this but an attempt to get back to the moral square? Many inventions! clever enough, cheap enough, dear enough, plentiful enough, but Failure written upon every one of them, for they that use them are as a bowing wall and a tottering fence. No happier term could be applied to them than the term “inventions,” clever little schemes, pet little notions, patents newly turned out, small mechanisms, anything that indicates a debased ingenuity, a paltry and self-defeating cleverness.
But with all his inventions and scheming there are two things which man cannot do. First, he cannot tell what shall be:
“For he knoweth not that which shall be: for who can tell him when it shall be?” ( Ecc 8:7 ).
Here the pride of man comes under daily rebuke. Though he may be able to see many years behind him, he cannot see one hour in front of him. When he vapours about his power, and sends forth his ambition on its broadest wings, he cannot tell but what in the evening he may be dead and almost forgotten. When he lifts his puny fist in the air he knows not whether he may ever bring it down. Be careful, O loud boaster and flippant swaggerer! That gabbling tongue of thine talks riotously without sense or dignity, and it will bring thee into peril and misery and sharp pain! You have invented a field-glass, a telescope, a microscope; you can see fifty yards ahead, or can get a view of shining points far away, or catch some little traveller trotting in vast excursions over the unexplored Africa of a grass blade. Now invent a glass that will look into Tomorrow, or even a glass that will look farther than we can now see where is the prodigal that ran away a year ago, and of whom his mother has never heard; or the ship that ought to have been in port a month since; or the explorer in the wild forest? tell us these things, and then we shall know something of human might and grandeur. “He knoweth not that which shall be!” Yet such is the fascination of the future that man is always thinking about it. The very fact that he does not know what it will be seems to awaken within him a speculative genius, a spirit that will make all his calculations turn upon the possibilities of Tomorrow; mathematics will be made into an instrument of speculation; the most careful reckoning will be gone through in order if possible to anticipate the shape and tone and manner of the future. Yet there lies the dead secret; nothing can charm it into speech, the cleverest man cannot tempt it to give up its mystery. Man may look far behind him, and study the fully-written page of history, but he cannot turn over the leaves of the Future; those leaves can only be turned over by the invisible hand of God.
The next thing man cannot do is to retain the spirit in the day of death:
“There is no man that hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit; neither hath he power in the day of death: and there is no discharge in that war” ( Ecc 8:8 ).
Man has fought some little battles and won some little victories, but here is a fight in which his banners must be dragged in the dust, and he himself must fall. His brazen shield is of no use. He knows not where the enemy may strike in the spine, in the forehead, in the heart, in the foot, in the lungs, but when he does strike he cleaves right through to the startled and quivering life. Oh, poor are our barricades against this great foe! We have gone into the chamber where the battle has been fought and lost, and with a grim and mournful humour have set in array the weapons of the poor human fighter the mixture, the pills, the thirsty leech, the sharp blister, the instrument keenly edged; the appointed hours for attention to medical direction, the cooling draughts, the soothing appliances, the narcotics, the stimulants, all the various instruments and weapons of medical skill there all there waiting to be used, willing to conquer, anxious to succeed. Look at them! Laugh at them! Black Death was too cunning and mighty for all their subtlety and strength. So he has borne away his prey, and none can recall him, and make him deliver that which he has wrested from the hand of love.
Now all this being the case, we want a higher power than man’s to trust in. We have had enough of human invention, human consolation, and human flattery; all these have but vexed and mortified us; we trusted in them, and they brought us nothing but disappointment; we cannot in justice to our own spiritual dignity listen to them any longer. Oh that we knew the place of the Eternal! Oh that we could find the living One, and plead our cause before him, asking him to pity our infirmity, and to make our very littleness and weakness the ground of his coming to us, in all the pathos and helpfulness of his condescending love. Whilst we are uttering these aspirations, and are thus sighing away our little strength, we are told that there is One who has come who is mighty to save none other than the Son of man, the Son of God, to whom all power in heaven and on earth is given, who will answer our questions, soothe our agitations, wash away our sins, sanctify us wholly by the mighty power of his Spirit. The answer of the Gospel to human necessity is a grand answer, and by so much as it is notable for moral sublimity it should be considered as the most probable of all the solutions which have ever been offered to the problem of human life and the mystery of human destiny.
“And so I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from the place of the holy, and they were forgotten in the city where they had so done: this is also vanity” ( Ecc 8:10 ).
A very graphic and truthful picture. The wicked buried and forgotten. The candle of the wicked shall be put out. The name of the wicked shall rot. The wicked man may have a very boisterous day, and may create great uneasiness by his violence, but he will go out like a dying candle, and no man will mourn his loss. “I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree. Yet he passed away, and, lo, he was not: yea, I sought him, but he could not be found.” No wonder that the wicked man dreads the Bible, as the leper might fear the mirror which reveals to him all his loathsomeness, for the Bible haunts him, smites him, and visits him with the most appalling humiliations. “The triumphing of the wicked is short.” “Though his excellency mount up to the heavens, and his head reach unto the clouds; yet he shall perish for ever like his own dung.” They who have seen him shall say, Where is he? He shall fly away as a dream, and shall not be found; yea, he shall be chased away as a vision of the night. To see the rage of the wicked, and hear their oaths and asseverations, one would say, Surely they will pluck up the foundations and overthrow the throne, and they will carry out their will to its uttermost purpose and desire. Yet, lo, they are covered with darkness, and their boasting tongues are sealed in silence everlasting. They hold up their heads as if the sky were too low a roof for their proud stature, and, lo! they stumble into a pit, and no hand plants a sweet flower on their grave. They sleep on an unblessed pillow, and rot away in a prison whose doors open only towards penalty and shame. “My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not,” for their way is towards darkness, and their victories are full of stings and pains.
“Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil” ( Ecc 8:11 ).
Thus the patience of God is misunderstood and abused. We are all tempted to wonder why God should allow the wicked to live even for a day. There is one world amid the stars which reeks with foulness and corruption; up from that unholy place there goes a continual smoke of abomination; it fills the air with pestilence, and its voices of sinful utterance almost throw into discord the sweet harmonies of the upper spheres. Why does the Almighty allow that mean world to smoulder, and to fill the higher air with vapours offensive and deadly? Why not crush it, and destroy it, and cause its name to be blotted out from the list of fair stars that have never sinned? These are questions which philosophy may ask, but which philosophy can never answer. Let the parent reply who spends many a sleepless night over the prodigal whose name he can never forget! It is only love that can make any answer amid these solemn moral mysteries. See how the divine patience is misunderstood and abused! Imagine another system of discipline: God standing over us with a rod of iron, and instantly that any man sinned that man should be struck dead! Such is not God’s government. He is longsuffering and pitiful and kind and hopeful. But it is exactly this which is misunderstood. Because he does not do it men think he cannot do it. Who can understand patience? We admire violence, we call it high spirit; we applaud instancy of penal visitation, thinking that it shows how just we are; but who can understand mercy, or see in forbearance the highest aspect of righteousness? “Despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?” God does not shut the door hastily; he comes out and watches, and hopes and waits. He is determined not to begin the festival until the very last guest has at least had an opportunity of arriving. He would seem to be more deeply moved by the absence of some than by the presence of many. Who can understand the heartache of God’s love? He does not hesitate to describe himself as grieved and disappointed, as sorrowful and as full of pain, because the children whom he has nourished and brought up have rebelled against him. But let us clearly understand that though God is forbearing, there will come a time when even He will no longer strive with men. “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” At the same time he has said, “My Spirit shall not always strive with man.” “He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.”
“Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him: but it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his days, which are as a shadow; because he feareth not before God” ( Ecc 8:12-13 ).
The forbearance that is shown to the wicked is not shown at the expense of the righteous; that is to say, it is not something subtracted from the heritage of the good man. Nor is it a sign of forgetfulness on the part of God as to the deserts of the wicked. God will not hastily strike the ground from under the feet of the bad man; rather he allows that ground to crumble away little by little, showing him the consequences of what he is doing, and calling him all the while to the rock everlasting. The bad man seems to have a long lease, but what is it but a shadow? The time is only long in appearance whilst it lasts, but as soon as it has fled away how poor a thing it seems to be! Where are now the men who have lifted their mouths against the heavens, and sent forth their defiances as against the eternal arm? what is the life of man but a handful of years at the most? and if he has made no provision for a blissful eternity he has been dying whilst he lived.
Divine forbearance has always been more or less misunderstood. This is made clear by Ecc 8:14 :
“There is a vanity which is done upon the earth; that there be just men, unto whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked; again, there be wicked men, to whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous: I said that this also is vanity.”
This was the impression produced on the public mind by the apparent good fortune of the wicked. “Ye have said, It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it that we have kept his ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the Lord of hosts?” And they called the proud happy, and set up them that worked wickedness “They say unto God, depart from us; for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways. What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? and what profit should we have, if we pray unto him?” It was questioning and rebellion like this that led the Almighty to reply: “I will search Jerusalem with candles, and punish the men that are settled on their lees: that say in their heart, The Lord will not do good, neither will he do evil.” Let us allow that appearances are sometimes in favour of this theory. It does appear as if the wicked had in many instances a lot preferable to that of the righteous, at all events quite equal to it. But consider the duration of the lot of the wicked: “Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things.” Then consider the compensation which righteousness never fails to realise in an approving conscience and in a bright hope concerning the future of retribution and adjustment; add to this the consideration that the Christian has a sure and certain hope of a glorious immortality. He says, “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” His words are full of triumph: “We know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” The apostle was not slow to confess that if in this life only we have hope, we are of all men most miserable. Asaph confessed that the wicked were “not in trouble as other men; their eyes stand out with fatness: they have more than heart could wish.” The apostle makes out a list of his personal sufferings, and whilst we read it we wonder that God should have dealt out such severity towards those who are uppermost and foremost in his holy service. But the apostle himself gave the right interpretation of all sorrows, losses, distresses; he says,”Our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” The point of view has been changed. The standard of valuation has been altered. Looked at within the limits of time, religion as Christians understand it may seem to be followed by many a disaster; but looked at in the light of eternity, Christians are enabled to “glory in tribulations also,” and to be exceeding joyful, even in the midst of multiplied distresses. This is a miracle which cannot be explained in words. It is the living and perpetual miracle of Christian experience.
Fuente: The People’s Bible by Joseph Parker
XXVII
OTHER METHODS APPLIED
Ecc 5:10-8:15
The fourth method applied was riches with the result that they were found to be insufficient because, (1) they cannot satisfy; (2) consumers of wealth increase with wealth; (3) the owner can only look at it; (4) he cannot sleep like & laborer; (5) riches may hurt the owner; (6) they may perish in an unlucky venture; (1) the owner begets a son when he is bankrupt; (8) in any event he is stripped of it all at death; (9) it causes him to lead a worried life.
The conclusion of this matter is found in Ecc 5:18-20 . According to this conclusion, it is good and comely for one to eat and drink and enjoy good in all his labor, but he must keep in mind that this is the gift of God; he will not much remember the days of his life, but it does not matter provided they were filled with the good which brings joy to his heart.
Another observation on riches is noted in Ecc 6:1-2 , viz: that the man who has immense wealth may not be able to eat of his bounty) and like one multimillionaire, may offer a million dollars for a new stomach, but there are some things that money cannot buy. He must stand by and see another consume what he has not the ability to enjoy. In Ecc 6:3-6 the author reasons that an untimely birth would be better than the condition of a man, blessed with a hundred children and a long life, if his soul be not filled with good.
The reasons assigned in Ecc 6:7-12 for this failure of riches are,
(1) All labor is for his mouth, therefore, the eternity in his soul cannot be satisfied in this way (Ecc 6:7-9 ).
(2) The greatest is but a man and cannot contend against God; neither can anyone tell man what shall be after him (Ecc 6:10-12 ).
The fifth method applied was the golden mean, on which he says that a good name is better than precious oil (Ecc 7:1 ); that it is better to go to the house of mourning than to the house of feasting, because sorrow makes the heart better (Ecc 7:2-4 ); that the reproof of the wise is better than the laughter of fools (Ecc 7:5-7 ); that the end of a thing is better than the beginning of it and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit (Ecc 7:8 ); that it is not good to be hasty to get angry, for that is like a fool (Ecc 7:9 ); that we should not talk of “the good old days,” for this is not wise (Ecc 7:10 ); that wisdom is more excellent than wealth because wisdom preserves life to him that has it (Ecc 7:11-12 ); that it is not good to try to make all the crooked things straight (Ecc 7:13 ); that man should be joyful in his prosperity and considerate in his adversity, for they both come from God (Ecc 7:14 ); that since it sometimes happens that the righteous die while the wicked live, be not righteous over much, nor too wise, nor too wicked, nor too foolish, but hold somewhat to both (Ecc 7:15-18 ); that wisdom is stronger than ten rulers and this golden mean plan is great because there is not a righteous man in the earth that sinneth not (Ecc 7:19-20 ); that a man should not try to find out what people say about him, lest he might hear something bad about himself (Ecc 7:21-22 ).
The result of all this golden mean philosophy is that this theory is unsatisfactory and there is a higher wisdom attainable (Ecc 7:23-25 ). It is unsatisfactory because of its failure in the following particulars:
(1) Because woman is more bitter than death. There is one man of a thousand, though fallen, but there is not one woman of a thousand. Why? because he gave only one thousandth part of himself to each of them and for that reason he ought not to have expected a whole in return (Ecc 7:26-29 ).
(2) Because it is a failure when applied to public affairs (Ecc 8:1-9 ) saying, (a) Do not rebel, (Ecc 8:1-2 ); (b) Do not resent oppression (Ecc 8:3-4 ); (c) Leave the case to God’s retribution (Ecc 8:5-7 ) ; (d) The evil ruler will die and there is DO furlough in that warfare (Ecc 8:8 ).
(3) Because there are rulers who rule over men to their hurt (Ecc 8:9-10 ).
(4) Because the mills of the gods grind too slowly for the correction of this evil (Ecc 8:11-13 ).
(5) Because, though ultimately it is well with the righteous and evil with the wicked, yet here and now we do see wicked men get the crown of the righteous and vice versa (Ecc 8:14 ). The conclusion of all this, then, is that he commanded mirth, because he saw no better thing under the sun than for man to eat and drink and be joyful all the days of his life (Ecc 8:15 ).
QUESTIONS
1. What is the fourth method applied and with what results?
2. Why were riches insufficient?
3. What is the conclusion of this matter?
4. What is observation on riches noted in Ecc 6:1-2 and what reasonings based thereon in Ecc 6:3-6 ?
5. What reasons are assigned in Ecc 6:7-12 for this failure of riches?
6. What is the fifth method applied?
7. On this golden mean what says he of a good name?
8. What of the house of mourning and the house of feasting?
9. What of the reproof of the wise and the laughter of fools?
10. What of the beginning and end of a thing and the patient and proud in spirit?
11. What of anger?
12. What of “the good old days”?
13. What of the advantage of wisdom over wealth?
14. What of the crooked things?
15. What of prosperity and adversity?
16. What of the righteous and the wicked?
17. What of wisdom and rulers and why is this golden mean great?
18. What of things said about you?
19. What is the result of all this golden mean philosophy?
20. Why is this golden mean unsatisfactory?
21. What is the conclusion of all this?
Fuente: B.H. Carroll’s An Interpretation of the English Bible
Ecc 8:1 Who [is] as the wise [man]? and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? a man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the boldness of his face shall be changed.
Ver. 1. Who is as the wise man? ] q.d., He is a matchless man, a peerless paragon, outshining others as much as the moon doth the lesser stars. a Plato could say that no gold or precious stone doth glister so gloriously, , as the prudent spirit of a good man. “Thou art a prince of God amongst us,” said the Hittites to Abraham. “Can we find such a man as this Joseph, in whom the Spirit of God is?” said Pharaoh to his counsellors. Gen 41:38 “Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth?” Job 1:8 “My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all my house,” and shall be of my cabinet council. Num 12:7 To him God said, Tu vero hic sta mecum, “But do thou stand here by me.” Exo 34:5 Sapiens Dei comes est, saith Philo. Look how kings have their favourites, whom they call comites, their cousins and companions; so hath God. Nay, the righteous are “princes in all lands,” Psa 45:16 kings in righteousness; Mat 13:17 Luk 10:24 the “excellent ones of the earth,” Psa 16:3 the worthies of the world, Heb 11:5 fitter to be set as stars in heaven, and to be continually before the throne of God. Chrysostom b calls some holy men of his time, , earthly angels; and speaking of Babylac the martyr, he saith of him, c Magnus atque admirabilis vir, He was an excellent and an admirable man, &c. And Tertullian, writing to some of the martyrs, says, Non tantus sum ut vos alloquar, I am not good enough to speak unto you. Oh that my life, and a thousand such wretches more, might go for yours! Oh, why doth God suffer me and other such caterpillars to live, saith John Careless, martyr, in a letter to that angel of God, Mr Bradford, as Dr Taylor called him, that can do nothing but consume the alms of the Church, and take away you, so worthy a workman and labourer in the Lord’s vineyard. d
And who knoweth the interpretation of a thing?
A man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine.] Godliness is venerable and reverend. “Holy and reverend is his name.” Psa 111:9 God’s image is amiable and admirable, Natural conscience cannot but stoop and do obeisance to it, What a deal of respect did Nebuchadnezzar and Darius put upon Daniel! Alexander the Great upon Jaddus the high priest! Theodosius upon Ambrose! Constantine upon Paphnutius, kissing that eye of his that was bored out for the cause of Christ! &c. Godly men have a daunting presence, as Athanasius had, and Basil, to whom when Valens the Arian emperor came, while he was in holy exercises, it struck such a terror into him that he reeled, and had fallen had he not been upheld by those that were with him. e Henry II of France being present at the martyrdom of a certain tailor, burnt by him for religion, was so terrified by the boldness of his countenance, and the constance of his sufferings, that he swore at his going away that he would never any more be present at such a sight. f
And the boldness of his face shall be changed.
a Velut inter stellas luna minores.
b Hom. 55, in Matth.
c Orat. Contra Gentiles.
d Acts and Mon., 1744
e Greg., Orat. de Laude Basilii.
f Epit. Hist. Gal, 82
g Speed, 688.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Ecclesiastes Chapter 8
The close of the last chapter is the manifest transition to the beginning here. Bitter to the royal Preacher was his reflection on an experience he had proved so thoroughly. Nevertheless self-reproach did not lessen his sense of the value of wisdom.
“Who [is] as the wise man? and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? A man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the hardness of his face is changed. [I counsel thee], Keep the king’s command, and [that] in regard of the oath of God. Be not hasty to go out of his presence; persist not in an evil thing: for he doeth whatsoever pleaseth him, because the king’s word hath power; and who may say unto him, What dost thou? Whoso keepeth the commandment shall know no evil thing; and a wise man’s heart discerneth time and judgment: for to every purpose there is a time and judgment; because the misery of man is great upon him: for he knoweth not that which shall be; for who can tell him how it shall be? There is no man that hath power over the day of death; and there is no discharge in that war: neither shall wickedness deliver him that is given to it. All this have I seen, and applied my heart unto every work that is done under the sun: there. is a time wherein one man hath power over another to his hurt. And withal I saw the wicked buried, and they came to the grave; and they that had done right went away from the holy place, and were forgotten in the city: this also is vanity” (vers. 1-10).
Wisdom is inseparable from the fear of the Lord, its beginning; and consists of entrance into His mind, and thus solves questions otherwise inscrutable in a skein so tangled as man every where offers as he is now. Nor this only; it transfigures himself, be he ever so plain, and changes the strength of his face, bold as it may be by nature. So in the N.T. let your moderation be known to all men, trying as circumstances may be. Obedience is a first principle, as the Preacher lays down emphatically and this not for wrath but for conscience’ sake – the oath of God. Haste to go out of his sight is as dangerous as persisting in an evil; for power is of God, and he wieldeth not the sword in vain. Power from the people is a base falsehood, and a usurpation fatal to those that forget God and His word. Rulers are a terror not to good work but to evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? Do the good thing, and thou shalt have praise from it, for he is God’s minister to thee for good. The wise heart discerns time and judgment: so we see in scripture and prove in daily life, and here dependence on God is invaluable. The king needs it at least as much as his subjects. So Solomon began; not so did he proceed when wealth and honour and pleasure filled his life; but so now in repentance he feels and teaches us all. For every purpose is it requisite; and as the wisdom that discerns time and judgment is rare, so is the misery of man great for the want of foreseeing. For he knows not what is coming and can find none on earth to tell him. Oh, if he but looked up to Him Who knows all and bowed to His will! This is part of divine wisdom and open to all that fear Him in the midst of creature changes, with death the closing scene of man here. Who has control over the spirit, who over the day of death? Where the discharge in that war? Wickedness assuredly shall deliver none given to it. All this had the Preacher seen, and set his heart to all the working which is done under the sun, the time when man ruleth man to his hurt. He had on the one hand seen the wicked buried and gone, and on the other those that had done right gone from the place of the holy and forgotten in the city. This too is vanity, and yet plain fact.
“Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. Though a sinner do evil a hundred times, and prolong his days, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, because they fear before him: but it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his [days], which are as a shadow, because he feareth not before God. There is a vanity which is done upon the earth; that there are righteous [men], unto whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked; again, there are wicked men, to whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous. I said that this also is vanity. Then I commended mirth, because a man hath no better thing under the sun, than to eat, and to drink, and to be merry: for that shall abide with him in his labour the days of his life which God hath given him under the sun.
“When I applied mine heart to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done upon the earth: (for also [there is that] neither day nor night seeth sleep with his eyes:) then I beheld all the work of God, that man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because however much a man labour to seek out, yet he shall not find; yea moreover, though a wise man think to know, yet shall he not be able to find” (vers. 11-17).
How vividly and unquestionably a true picture of mankind as they are! Evil abounds and flourishes till the Lord come; yet no less surely the moral government of God secures good to those that fear before Him, and retribution to those that fear Him not: were they to live long, it is but a shadow. Whatever vanity be in that reaching righteous ones according to the doing of the wicked, and to wicked ones according to the working of the righteous, God is not mocked nor man overlooked. But it is not yet the day when righteous power permits no evil and good openly triumphs? This is reserved for the kingdom, as the kingdom is for Christ appearing in glory and those who suffered with Him then glorified.
Meanwhile the Preacher again praises the thankful acceptance in this mingled scene of what God gives for the life that now is, without perplexity as to its riddles, which escape even such as sleep not day or night: they are beyond man’s ken to solve, let him be ever so wise. Christ alone clears up, and. the Spirit sent to dwell in all that are His; for He searches all, yea, the depths of God; but this is lost, just so far as with a divided heart man is trusted.
Fuente: William Kelly Major Works (New Testament)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Ecc 8:1
1Who is like the wise man and who knows the interpretation of a matter? A man’s wisdom illumines him and causes his stern face to beam.
Ecc 8:1 the interpretation of a matter This (BDB 833 CONSTRUCT 182) later came to be associated with the interpretation of dreams, especially in Daniel, but here it has no such connotation. It is another way of referring to human reason or wisdom.
NASBillumines
NKJV, NRSVmakes his face shine
TEVmakes them smile
NJBlights up the face
LXXlighten
It is possible that Ecc 8:1 should go with chapter 7 and conclude that discussion. Rhetorical questions often close units (i.e., Ecc 6:12). It seems unrelated to what follows unless it deals with how a wise person should act in the presence of a king. However, I personally think the king refers to God.
This VERB (BDB 21; KB 24; Hiphil IMPERFECT) is often used of God’s face (e.g., Num 6:25; Psa 4:6; Psa 31:16; Psa 44:3; Psa 67:1; Psa 80:3; Psa 80:7; Psa 80:19; Psa 89:15; Psa 119:135; Dan 9:17), but only here of a human face.
causes his stern face to beam Beam literally means change (BDB 1039 I, cf. NKJV). This verse means either (1) wisdom gives peace and contentment or (2) wisdom helps courtiers keep their true feelings to themselves (cf. Ecc 8:3; Ecc 10:4).
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
as = like.
who . . . ? Supply the Ellipsis (App-6), from the preceding line: “Who [is like him that] knoweth? “
interpretation = understanding.
wisdom. Hebrew. chakmah. See note on Pro 8:1, Pro 8:2.
boldness = sternness.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Chapter 8
Who is as the wise man? and who knows the interpretation of a thing? a man’s wisdom makes his face to shine, and the boldness of his face shall be changed. I counsel thee to keep the king’s commandment, and that in regard of the oath of God. Be not hasty to go out of his sight: stand not in an evil thing; for he doeth whatsoever pleaseth him. Where the word of the king is, there is power: and who may say unto him, What are you doing? ( Ecc 8:1-4 )
The king stands as the authority. You can’t really come to the king and say, “Hey, what are you doing?” And the same is true of God. Paul said, “Who are you to say unto Him that has created you, ‘Why hast Thou made me thus?'” ( Rom 9:20 ) The sovereignty of the king, which also speaks to the sovereignty of God.
Whoso keeps the commandment shall feel no evil thing: and a wise man’s heart discerns both time and judgment. Because to every purpose there is time and judgment, therefore the misery of man is great upon him. For he knoweth not that which shall be: for who can tell him when it shall be? ( Ecc 8:5-7 )
So you don’t really know what’s going to be, when it’s going to be. The future is so uncertain.
There is no man that has power over his spirit to retain the spirit; neither hath he power in the day of death: and there is no discharge in that war; neither shall wickedness deliver those that are given to it ( Ecc 8:8 ).
No man has any power over the spirit. When the time comes for you to die, you don’t have any power over your spirit to retain it, to cause your spirit to remain. No power in death. The only one who really did exercise that kind of power over his spirit was Jesus Christ. When on the cross, it said, “He bowed his head and dismissed His Spirit” ( Joh 19:30 ). He had earlier said unto them, “No man takes My life from Me, I give My life” ( Joh 10:18 ). In order to keep with what He said, “No man takes My life,” when He was hanging there on the cross after He cried, “It is finished” ( Joh 19:30 ), “Father, into Thy hands I commend My Spirit” ( Luk 23:46 ), He bowed His head, and it said, “And He dismissed His Spirit.” He said, “Okay, you can go now.” And He died. He had power over His Spirit to dismiss it. We don’t have that power.
All this have I seen, and applied my heart unto every work that is done under the sun: there is a time wherein one man rules over another to his own hurt. And so I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from the place of the holy, and they were forgotten in the city where they had so done: this is also vanity ( Ecc 8:9-10 ).
I see life moving on. People are soon forgotten after they die. Life is empty.
Now because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil ( Ecc 8:11 ).
One of the common mistakes that people make is that of misinterpreting the nature of God. One aspect of God’s nature is His tremendous patience with rebelling man. God is exceedingly long-suffering. God puts up with so much. He doesn’t strike immediately, but oftentimes forestalls judgment for months, for years. And thus, it appears that the evil man is getting away with his evil actions, his evil deeds. And people begin to misinterpret the long-suffering of God. Because He doesn’t execute His sentence speedily, because He doesn’t immediately come down to the fist of judgment upon a man, a man many times thinks he’s getting away with his evil. Thinks he has put one over on God. Thinks that he has been clever and has hid his sin from God, or worse yet, thinks that God is condoning what he has done. Because I’m still blessed and I’m prosperous. “I’m a prosperous cheat, so God is condoning my cheating. It doesn’t matter to God that I cheat. It doesn’t matter to God that I lie or I steal or whatever because look, I’m blessed. It doesn’t matter to God that I’m living an immoral life, because look at all that I have.” And people begin to misinterpret God’s grace and God’s long suffering as God’s approbation for their actions and for their lives. Not so. That’s a fatal mistake to make. God does know. God does see. God does care. God will judge. But because God doesn’t judge immediately, because the sentence of God isn’t executed speedily, because God is giving you opportunity to turn, God is giving you opportunity to repent, God is giving you the opportunity to come out of your sin and to be saved and He’s very patient with you. God’s not willing that any should perish but that all should come into repentance. You see, the real delay in the return of Jesus Christ is just God’s unwillingness that men should perish.
As Peter is talking about the second coming of the Lord, he said, “Hey, in the last days there are going to be scoffers that are going to come saying, ‘Where is the promise of Jesus coming again? They’ve been talking about that for years. He hasn’t come and He’s not going to come. Things just continue as they were from the beginning.'” But Peter said, “God isn’t slack concerning His promises, as some men count slackness, but He’s faithful to usward. But He is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” ( 2Pe 3:9 ). Therefore, consider ye actually this time as God’s patience in order that men might be saved.
So, because God has waited so long, because God hasn’t speedily executed His sentence against the evil, people begin to assume that God has just withdrawn Himself. That Jesus isn’t coming again. That all of the talk of the rapture of the church and the return of Jesus Christ is just piped dreams, a misinterpretation of scriptures. And they begin to make fun of the return of Jesus Christ. They begin to scoff at it, even as Peter said they would. It’s because they are misinterpreting the patience of God waiting for men to be saved, because God is not willing that any should perish. So God is very kind. He’s very loving. He’s very patient. He’s very long-suffering. He’s giving you chance after chance after chance. But it is tragic when people misinterpret God’s patience and God’s kindness. And thus, they give their hearts over to evil because they think that God is too remote to care. “It doesn’t really matter to God how I live. God doesn’t really know.” And they give their hearts and their lives over to evil to live an evil life. That is a tragic, fatal mistake of misinterpreting God’s grace and God’s goodness to you.
Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged ( Ecc 8:12 ),
Remember he was talking about how he saw that the ungodly man was living a long life, the righteous were dying young and the ungodly were living long. So, “Though a sinner do evil a hundred times, and his days be prolonged,”
yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him ( Ecc 8:12 ):
Now, in the end the best life is the life of fearing God, walking with God. Fear of the Lord is to depart from evil. So I know that in the long run that life is the best. It’s going to be well with the man who has departed from evil.
But it shall not be well with the wicked ( Ecc 8:13 ),
In the end God’s judgment will come. You can’t escape it. God’s judgment will come, and thus, I surely know it will be well with those that fear God. “But it shall not be well with the wicked.”
neither shall he prolong his days, which are as a shadow; because he fears not before God. There is a vanity which is done upon the earth; that there be just men, unto whom it happens according to the work of the wicked; again, there be wicked men, to whom it happens according to the work of the righteous: so I said that this also is vanity ( Ecc 8:13-14 ).
Things happen to both good and evil men. Same kind of experiences to both. A righteous man gets cancer; an unrighteous man gets cancer. A righteous man has prospered; an unrighteous man has prospered. Who makes this observation? What happens to one happens to the other. It’s emptiness.
Then I commended merriment, because a man hath no better thing ( Ecc 8:15 )
And this is his human philosophy and human reasoning coming out again. Hey, it’s great to be merry because a man has no better thing under the sun. And it’s probably true. Under the sun, man, life is just very shallow and you live life in a very shallow level, and
under the sun the best thing to do is just to eat and drink and be merry ( Ecc 8:15 ):
Because man, that’s all she wrote. That’s the sum of life for you, so you might as well live it up because you’re going to be burning after a while. So you know, live it up now. Life under the sun.
for that shall abide with him of his labor the days of his life, which God gives him under the sun ( Ecc 8:15 ).
Might as well enjoy what you got now, because man, it’s going to be tough later.
When I applied mine heart to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done upon the earth: (for also there is that neither day nor night seeth sleep with his eyes:) Then I beheld all the work of God, that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because though a man labor to seek it out, yet he shall not find it; yea farther; though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not be able to find it ( Ecc 8:16-17 ).
A man cannot find out the work of God though you search it out. “
Fuente: Through the Bible Commentary
Ecc 8:1-5
OBEDIENCE AN ESSENTIAL PART OF WISDOM
Ecc 8:1-5
“Who is as the wise man? and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? A man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the hardness of his face is changed. I counsel thee, Keep the king’s command, and that in regard of the oath of God. Be not hasty to go out of his presence; persist not in an evil thing: for he doeth whatsoever pleaseth him. For the king’s word hath power; and who may say unto him, What doest thou? Whoso keepeth the commandment shall know no evil thing; and a wise man’s heart discerneth time and judgment.”
A comparison of translations will reveal some uncertainties about what is actually said here. Cook’s opinion that obedience to the king is the subject appears to be correct; and we know that this would be exactly what a king like Solomon would advise. As a matter of fact, respect for all legitimate authority is the foundation of all law, civilization and social order. It begins with respect for the authority of parents and teachers and continues as mandatory for all authority, as Paul himself pointed out in Romans 13. Waddey agreed that, “The first five verses here admonish us to be submissive to governmental authority.
“A man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine” (Ecc 8:1). “The claim here is that wisdom gives insight and charm. “A man’s wisdom illumines him and causes his stern face to shine, It is not exactly clear why this has anything to do with the paragraph. Cox’s comment was that, “Culture lends an air of refinement to the face, and that it improves the carriage, demeanor and personality of the possessor. Delitzsch said, “This verse announces and verifies the incomparable superiority of the wise man.
“Keep the king’s command … in regard to the oath of God.” (Ecc 8:2). “This is a religious duty, corresponding to Rom 13:5.
“Be not hasty to go out of his presence” (Ecc 8:3). This might mean a number of things: “(1) do not desert the king in time of danger; (2) do not resign your office in haste when things go wrong; (3) don’t storm out of his presence in anger when you are not pleased; or, (4) don’t seek to flee the country as a defector. The student may take his choice!
“For he doeth whatever pleaseth him” (Ecc 8:3). Delitzsch translated this: “The king executes anyone he pleases to execute.
“Whoso keepeth the commandment shall know no evil thing” (Ecc 8:5). This should be understood in the light of many other Old Testament passages which place definite boundaries upon the obedience that any servant of God should give to the evil commandments of earthly rulers. The three Hebrew children refused to worship Nebuchadnezzar’s golden image, and Daniel continued to pray to Almighty God, in spite of the specific orders of the mightiest king of antiquity that forbade their actions. The strong suggestion in these verses to the effect that a `wise man’ might, through expediency, conform his views to that of some evil ruler cannot negate the truth. “If a man is really wise, he will know that the king’s action or commandment is liable to correction, if it is wrong, in God’s time and by God’s judgment.
As noted in the outline, there are five distinct divisions in this section which relate to solving some of the problems of life. In each instance, wisdom is the guide which leads the reader to the correct solution. The first area of discussion calls attention to the authority in the land, suggesting that submission to the law will result in pleasant relationships between the king and his subjects. The heart of the discussion is summarized in the words, He who keeps a royal command experiences no trouble.
Ecc 8:1 There is no man on earth who can compare with a wise man. Such a man excels them all. It is evident that Solomon continues to extol wisdom. His emphasis is noted by his declaration that only a wise man can explain the difficult, and drive to the very foundation of things. There is more to the wise mans ability than that which equips him to be an interpreter of proverbs or an adequate manipulator of words. He can unfold the mysterious. He has the ability to draw back the veil and present a clear word picture of why things are.
This gift of understanding has a direct result on the wise mans heart which manifests itself immediately in his face. His knowledge has brought an inner awareness that he knows and understands both Gods word and Gods providential activities. His face literally shows it. He has a cheerful soul and his face shines. His face is but a reflection of his heart.
His face was formally stern. This word is variously translated into hardness, harshness, boldness, and fierce countenance (Deu 28:50). His wisdom transforms his face and causes it to beam. The marginal reading in the NASB reads: causes his stern face to change. Examples of such changes of facial expressions are found in Exo 34:29-30, Act 6:15; Act 7:14. Knowledge of the true God, and the awareness that one is keeping His commandments, results in both joy and happiness. Solomons father had expressed it simply: The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes (Psa 19:8). Sin causes the hardness of face, while righteousness drives out sin and welcomes peace and contentment. Jesus aptly struck at the heart of the matter when He said, Therefore every one who hears these words of Mine and acts upon them, may be compared to a wise man (Mat 7:24).
Ecc 8:2 Two problems arise from this verse: (1) Who is the king? Is this a reference to God or to an earthly king? (2) What oath was stated before God by the people in Solomons day? Authorities are divided on the first question but have generally agreed on the second. Let us consider the latter question first.
It is not so important that one determines the exact wording of the oath as this is not the point of Solomons argument. The point is that the oath was made before God, and it stands as a reminder that (1) it was made before the highest authority, and (2) it pertains to submission to the rule of the king. One such oath is recorded in 2Ki 11:17 where Jehoida made a covenant between the Lord and the king and the people, that they should be the Lords people, also between the king and the people. To be the Lords people is tantamount to the submission to the rule or the authority of the Lord. It is further noted in this illustration that a distinction is made between the Lord and the king. Israel saw the king as Gods representative who was appointed to carry out His will on earth. Thus, the oath was made to the highest authority and also bound the Israelites to the authority of their king. Instructions concerning such oaths are given in Exo 22:11; 1Ki 2:43; 2Sa 21:7 and Eze 17:18.
To whom does the term king refer? Many commentaries view the king as God and suggest that the entire context must be interpreted as to our submission to the heavenly King. However, the 2Ki 11:17 passage makes a clear distinction between the people, the earthly king, and the Lord. It appears that such a distinction would also capture the spirit of this passage. Everything spoken of in reference to the king could apply without difficulty to an earthly king. In forcing the meaning of the term king to refer to God, seems to be demanding more than either Solomon or the context intended to convey. New Testament parallels are found in Mat 12:21; Rom 13:1-7 and 1Pe 2:13-17.
Ecc 8:3 To break the oath is equal to entering into an association with evil. Therefore, the subjects of the kingdom are admonished not only to keep the command of the king, but to refrain from joining in an evil matter. The fear of the Lord has previously been defined (Cf. Ecc 5:7, p. 117) as departing from evil and doing that which is good. Solomon isnt introducing new material. He continues to pursue the characteristics of a wise man. In this instance, a wise man is one who recognizes the authority of the king and lives within the restrictions of the law.
Do not be in a hurry to leave him. The king is on the side of right; to depart from him would be to align oneself with evil. Cain is an example of one who because of his evil deed was forced to leave the companionship and security of the side of right. It is written of him, immediately after he had murdered his brother, that Cain went out from the presence of the Lord (Gen 4:16). The relationship the kings of Israel enjoyed with God was unique in history. There was a much closer correlation between their laws and the law of God than has existed in any other period of time. However, the principle that authority is ordained of God is still true. On the whole, the admonition of this verse remains a valid one. Paul wrote: Let every person be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. Therefore he who resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves (Rom 13:1-2).
To do whatever he pleases should be understood to mean that the king will inflict whatever punishment he wishes. It is the evil doer who draws the wrath of the king.
Ecc 8:4 The authority of the king has been established. On the basis of this conclusion, it must be admitted that none has the right to question the kings decision or to question the punishment which he places upon the wicked. The verse is not to be taken as blanket approval for all the activities of the king. It is to be understood in the light of two things: (1) Disobedient citizens who depart from the presence of the king and stand in an evil matter deserve punishment; (2) the punishment appointed is the prerogative of the king-none has the right to question him on such a matter.
Ecc 8:5 For authority to be meaningful, there must be laws and subsequent punishment exacted upon those who break the laws. Who is the wise man? A partial answer is arrived at in this verse. A wise man is one who keeps a royal command. It is generally true that obedience to the law results in peace. This principle is valid whether the law is Gods law or mans law.
Another characteristic of the wise man is that he recognizes that judgment and punishment will fall upon those who break the law. He knows there is a proper time and procedure. He practices patience and thus lives in peace. Sometimes such assurance is the only compensation for one who does right. Especially is this true when the authority is on the side of the oppressors (Ecc 4:1), or when the law-abiding poor have their wages withheld and on occasion are put to death (Jas 5:4-6). Even in the face of such extreme punishment they are encouraged to retain their wisdom: you too be patient; strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand (Jas 5:8). The lesson from Ecclesiastes, chapter three, had been that there is a time for everything under the sun. Now the Preacher is underlining his previous contention: God will judge both the righteous man and the wicked man, for a time for every matter and every deed is there (Ecc 3:17). Even God patiently waits until the sin has ripened fully on the vine. Man would like for punishment to fall swiftly as well as justly but life is not always this way. The wise heart recognizes that such judgment will come with certainty and thus tunes all of his thoughts and activities to this channel. It is at the fountain of patience and deep conviction in the justice of God that he drinks.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
In this division, dealing with the evidences of the vanity of life, the preacher sets forth certain deductions. The highest wisdom is submission to things as they are. Who knows anything? he asks. Therefore it is good to recognize the king’s authority and yield to it, to recognize the inevitableness of all things and submit to them, to recognize the absolute certainty of death and to abandon one’s self to that certainty. Yet in doing all this there will abide in the heart the recognition of abounding injustice. It is manifest in all the ways of men. In a clause which is intended to be a saving one, the preacher declares its existence but absolutely denies its activity. And what is the ultimate issue in all such convictions? “I commended mirth, because a man hath not better thing under the sun, than to eat, and to drink, and to be merry.” And this because wisdom is elusive. Man cannot know, therefore he need not try and should abandon himself to the sensual pleasures of the moment. It is all true if a man live “under the sun.”
Fuente: An Exposition on the Whole Bible
Ecc 8:9
The writer of these words means by “applying his heart” the exercise of his attention and his judgment. He was a general observer, with an exercise of his judgment. The Holy Scriptures plainly encourage an exercise of thoughtful attention on the actions and characters of men, and the course of the world’s events. But now comes the question as to the proper manner of doing this, so that it may really be beneficial.
I. If this attention to the actions and events of the world be employed merely in the way of amusement, there will be little good.
II. It is necessary to have just principles or rules to be applied in our observation of the world. And in this matter the most fatal error is to take from the world itself our principles for judging the world. They must be taken absolutely from the Divine authority, and always kept true to the dictates of that.
III. Notice two or three points of view or general references in which we should exercise this attention and judgment. (1) The grand primary reference with which we survey the world of human action should be to God. (2) Our observation should have reference to the object of forming a true estimate of human nature. (3) It should have reference to the illustration and confirmation of religious truths. (4) A faithful corrective reference to ourselves in our observation of others is a point of duty almost too plain to need mentioning. (5) Our exercise of attention and judgment on “every work that is done under the sun “should be under the habitual recollection that soon we shall cease to look on them; and that instead we shall be witnessing their consequences, and in a mighty experience also ourselves of consequences.
J. Foster, Lectures, 2nd series, p. 16.
References: Ecc 8:9-17.-R. Buchanan, Ecclesiastes: its Meaning and Lessons, p. 303. Ecc 8:10.-Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. iv., p. 200. Ecc 8:11.-Homiletic Quarterly, vol. v., p. 313; C. G. Finney, Sermons on Gospel Themes, p. 128; G. Dawson, Sermons on Daily Life and Duty, p. 184; H. W. Beecher, Christian World Pulpit, vol. iii., p. 259. Ecc 8:12.-Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. iii., No. 148.
Ecclesiastes 8:16-10:9
I. At the end of chap. viii. and the beginning of chap. ix., Koheleth points out that it is impossible for us to construct a satisfactory policy of life. “The work of God,” or, as we say, the ways of Providence, cannot be fathomed. To the wisest man, labour as he may, the drift of the Maker is dark. The enjoyment of life, he says, is your portion; that is, your destiny, your duty, your end. Therefore, whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might. The only thing in the universe we can be sure about is pleasure. Therefore let us get pleasure while we may.
II. He has shown us the uncertainty and consequent uselessness of piety. He has shown us that good men and bad men experience joy and sadness indiscriminately, and at last meet with the same fate of death. He now proceeds to poi;t out (Ecc 9:11) the uselessness of “wisdom and skill,” of what we should call ability. Misfortunes come upon the most deserving, and they cannot be foreseen. And besides the thwarting of Providence, able men have to suffer from the ingratitude of their fellows. The world is slow to reward the ability to which it owes so much. Sometimes it does happen that the advice of a wise man is taken in spite of his being poor. But one fool (not sinner) destroyeth much good. The fool is a great power in the world, especially the conceited fool. His self-assurance is mistaken for knowledge, while the modesty of the wise man is thought to be ignorance.
III. It may strike you as strange that among the various aims in life which Koheleth discusses he never mentions character. And yet it would have been stranger if he had. For what is the good of character to a being who may at any moment be turned into clay? Convince me that I must be extinguished some day, and that I may be extinguished any day, and I, too, should agree with Koheleth that my only rational course was to enjoy to the utmost the few moments that might be vouchsafed to me. Let me feel, on the other hand, that I carry latent within me “the power of an endless life,” and that some day in the great hereafter it is possible I may find myself “perfect even as God is perfect,” and then I can despise pleasure; I can see beauty in pain; I can gather up the energies of my being and consecrate them to righteousness and to God with enthusiastic and unwavering devotion.
A. W. Momerie, Agnosticism, p. 252.
Ecclesiastes 8:16-12:7
I. The Preacher commences this section by carefully defining his position and equipment as he starts on his last course. (1) His first conclusion is that wisdom, which of all temporal goods still stands foremost with him, is incapable of yielding a true content. Much as it can do for man, it cannot solve the moral problems which daily task and afflict his heart, the problems which he must solve before he can be at peace (8:16-9:6). (2) He reviews the pretensions of Wisdom and mirth (Ecc 9:7-10). To the baffled and hopeless devotee of wisdom he says, “Go, then, eat thy bread with gladness, and drink thy wine with a cheerful heart. Whatever you can get, get; whatever you can do, do. You are on your road to the dark, dismal grave, where there is no work nor device; there is the more reason therefore why your journey should be a merry one.” (3) He shows that the true good is not to be found in devotion to affairs and its rewards (9:13-10:20).
II. What the good is, and where it may be found, the Preacher now proceeds to show. (1) The first characteristic of the man who is likely to achieve the quest of the chief good is the charity which prompts him to be gracious, and show kindness, and do good, even to the thankless and ungracious. (2) The second characteristic is the steadfast industry which turns all seasons to account. Diligent and undismayed, he goes on his way, giving himself heartily to the present duty, “sowing his seed, morning and evening, although he cannot tell which shall prosper, this or that, or whether both shall prove good.” (3) This man has learned one or two of the profoundest secrets of wisdom. He has learned that giving, we gain; and spending, thrive. He has also learned that a man’s true care is himself; that his true business in the world is to cultivate a strong, dutiful character which shall prepare him for any world or any fate. He recognises the claims of duty and of charity, and does not reject these for pleasure. These keep his pleasures sweet and wholesome, prevent them from usurping the whole man and landing him in the weariness and satiety of disappointment. But lest even these safeguards should prove insufficient, he has also this: he knows that “God will bring him into judgment;” that all his work, whether of charity, or duty, or recreation, will be weighed in the balance of Divine justice (Ecc 9:9). This is the simple secret of the pure heart-the heart that is kept pure amid all labours, and cares, and joys.
S. Cox, The Quest of the Chief Good, p. 221.
Reference: 8:16-10:20.-G. G. Bradley, Lectures on Ecclesiastes, p. 108.
Ecc 8:17
One of the most curious things to think of in the world is the inconceivable number of secrets which lie around us in nature, in humanity, in the lives and characters of those whom we know or those we love. It is even more curious to think how much of the interest of human life, of its work, its thoughts, of its affections, dwells in the fact of these secrets. The sting of our ignorance is the spur of life; and the consciousness of a secret to discover is the flavour of happiness, though the flavour is sometimes too bitter.
I. In nature we meet a secret to which we know we have no key. The feeling of that secret has been universal in man. It lies at the root of half of the religion and mythology of the world. It is the solution of that secret which we seek through life, which all art has sought incessantly. But we get no reply, except a reply half of pity, half of mockery. There is no face so full of the wild satire of secrecy as the face of nature.
II. Still more profound, still more mocking, though never so delightful, is the secret of humanity. There is a tragedy in it which is not in the secret of nature, and which makes our interest in it more passionate, more dreadful, more bitter, more absorbing. The existence of the secret precludes dull repose. It kindles an insatiable and noble curiosity; and wherever its pursuit is hottest, there is man most noble. When its excitement lessens or nearly dies, then we get what we call the dark ages, and man is base. But that never can last long; the secret of humanity springs up again to lure us after it: and the mark of all times when man has awakened into a new resurrection has been this, and this more than all things else: deep and wonderful interest in mankind, pursuit of the secrets of humanity.
III. What use is there in the secret? How can we retain its charm, and get its good, and purify ourselves from the fear, and anger, and sloth, and despair we know it creates in many? (1) Its use may lie in this: in the education which the excitement it creates gives to all our nature; in the way it awakens all our passions, all our intellect, all our spirit, and leads them through a tempest in which they are purified from their evil, in which, their excess being exhausted, calm and the tempered balance of them become possible. (2) The answer to the second question is to do as the religious Greek did who threw himself on the eternal justice of God: to throw ourselves on the eternal love of a Father. To do that is to know that there must be a Divine and good end to all; to know that all which we see, however dark it be, is education; to know the victory of goodness, justice, and truth, and knowing it, to throw ourselves on that side, and to feel that in doing so we are chiming in with God and yielding our lives and will into His hand.
S. A. Brooke, Sermons, 2nd series, p. 161.
References: 8-C. Bridges, An Exposition of Ecclesiastes, p. 182; T. C. Finlayson, A Practical Exposition of Ecclesiastes, p. 187.
Fuente: The Sermon Bible
CHAPTER 8
1. Prudence before kings (Ecc 8:1-10)
2. Of the righteous and the wicked (Ecc 8:11-13)
3. The conclusion (Ecc 8:14-17)
Ecc 8:1-10. What else had he seen? What were his further discoveries? He is still ardent in praising wisdom, though he had confessed that it was far from him. Wisdom makes the face to shine and the boldness of the face becomes changed. He cautions as to the governmental powers in the world, urges prudence and submission. He is a keen observer. But nothing can deliver from the power of the grave. The tyrannic ruler ruleth over another to his own hurt, but the power of the tyrant does not deliver him from the power of the grave and he is soon forgotten.
Ecc 8:11-13. But here is a true statement, which the natural man discovers by observation, for instance, in reading the pages of history. Because sentence against an evil work is not speedily executed, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. Evil will be punished; man knows that by experience. And he knows that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before Him. But it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his days which are as a shadow, because he feareth not God. But what about his former saying, Be not righteous overmuch–be not overmuch wicked? He is in perplexity. But his reason, which has approved of fearing God, by which he knows that it shall be well on earth with the righteous, is now staggered, when he sees just men unto whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked, and wicked men to whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous. Nothing but contradictions! Like a shipwrecked man who strikes out amidst the raging waves to reach the land, and is constantly thrown back by the waves he tries to master, with all his wisdom, his searching, his conclusions and nice sayings, he is thrown back, and once more he cries his vanity.
Ecc 8:15-17. He is at the end of his wit. He moralized, spoke of things better; made his observations and gave exhortations; a measure of light he has to judge certain things, but the darkness is too overwhelming. His boasted wisdom has left him stranded completely. What then shall he say? In spite of the higher tone he assumed, he is back at his old conclusion, only more emphatic than before: Then I commended mirth, because a man hath no better thing under the sun than to eat, and to drink, and to be merry; for that shall abide with him of his labor the days of his life, which God giveth him under the sun. Enjoy life! There is no better thing! Thank God through revelation we know the better part, that which satisfies and which abides. Then comes the confession of utter helplessness in Ecc 8:17. A man, the natural man, cannot find out, he is not able to find out anything.
Fuente: Gaebelein’s Annotated Bible (Commentary)
as the: Ecc 2:13, Ecc 2:14, 1Co 2:13-16
who knoweth: Gen 40:8, Gen 41:15, Gen 41:16, Gen 41:38, Gen 41:39, Job 33:23, Pro 1:6, Dan 2:28-30, Dan 2:47, Dan 4:18, Dan 4:19, 2Pe 1:20
a man’s: Exo 34:29, Exo 34:30, Pro 4:8, Pro 4:9, Pro 17:24, Pro 24:5, Mat 17:2, Act 6:15
and the: Deu 28:50, Act 4:13, Act 4:29, Eph 6:19
boldness: Heb. strength, 2Ti 4:17
Reciprocal: Exo 34:35 – General Psa 104:15 – oil to make his Pro 12:8 – commended Pro 24:23 – things Jam 3:13 – is a
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
THE SECRET OF THE SHINING FACE
Wisdom maketh his face to shine.
Ecc 8:1
A mans wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the boldness or coarseness of his face shall be changed.
I. In ancient days it was noted that piety has an effect on the countenance.It brings refinement. It is a remarkable fact that wherever the Bible is read, wherever the Gospel is preached, those who come under its influence find the coarseness of their faces changed. They are raised in thought and feeling to a higher sphere, and that has an effect on their countenances. It is a grand thing to see the effect of conversion on a dull-faced, heavy-eyed, bloated-visaged public-house sot. It is as though a veil were lifted. There comes a new light in the eye, a new expression on the countenance, that leads others to take knowledge of him that he has been with Jesus. When, by Divine grace, the humblest soul gains the true wisdom, and visits the mount of communion with God, the great Father of lights maketh his face to shine, and the coarseness of his visage is changed.
II. So remarkable is this, that the inquiry has been made whether after all, the shining of the face of Moses after communion with God was merely miraculous, but rather the true effect of close intercourse with the God of light; and whether the angelic expression of Stephen was not also the true effect of his elevated spirit. Perhaps so. This we know, that there are to-day holy souls who sometimes carry on their countenances a light of their having been within the veil, very near in communion with their Lord.
Fuente: Church Pulpit Commentary
Ecc 8:1. Who is wise? There are few wise men in this world. Who knoweth, &c. How few understand the reasons of things, and can rightly expound the word and works of God! A mans wisdom makes his face, &c. Makes a man venerable, cheerful, mild, and amiable. The face is put for the mind, because the mind discovers itself in the countenance. The boldness of his face The roughness or fierceness of it, shall be changed Into gentleness and humility.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Ecc 8:1. Who is as the wise man; and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? In the Vulgate these two questions end the seventh chapter, to which they evidently belong. Placing them at the head of a new chapter, confuses the sense. A mans wisdom maketh his face to shine. It is surprising how strikingly the intellectual powers, and the moral qualities of the soul are seen through the countenance. Art and courtly graces are all hypocrisy here. We must be as innocent as the children, to look as innocently. A mind improved by wisdom, a heart inspired with the love of God, and delighting in piety and holiness, will change and hallow the aspects of a carnal man; while, as the LXX read, he that has an impudent look shall be hated. Wisdom has an intelligent aspect, and virtue an open countenance.
Ecc 8:2. Keep the kings commandment, as all his servants have sworn to do. He is a monarch, who knows nothing in those about him but obedience: his anger is a storm that must not be resisted. If this be the law of earthly courts, what then is due to the supreme Being? By him kings reign, and princes decree justice.
Ecc 8:6. To every purpose there is time and judgment. This whole passage seems to be a caution against sedition, revolt, and rebellion, by which the misery of man is great in the earth. He knows not what shall be the event of war, nor when the day of death shall come. Neither has any man power to retain his spirit, when the body shall cease to breathe. In our warfare with death, and all its train of evils, there is no discharge; no hiring of a substitute; money is of no value in that exchange. The emperor Adrian addresses his soul, as flying into every avenue, and hiding in every retreat of the body, to shun the arrest of death, as a bird flutters in the cage to avoid the invading foe. So HORACE, book 2. ode 13.
What though, where thundering lightnings play, The coward sculks from death?
In vainfor death, a subtle foe, Pursues whereer he flies; And where he least expects the blow, Even there the dastard dies.
Ecc 8:10. I saw the wicked buried, characters distinguished by their nobility, and more so by their errors and sins. The readings vary here. The LXX, I have seen the wicked buried, and carried (in splendid processions) from the holy place; and they returned, and were eulogized in the city, [by a venal orator] for what they had done. Funeral orations had this character. The orators sent all their heroes to the field of Elysian delight; but Solomon had his silent doubts. The gospel respecting the Sadducee, destitute of charity, has no doubt. In hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torments. Luk 16:23.
Ecc 8:11. Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily. See Pro 29:1, where similar words occur, and Psa 10:11.
Ecc 8:12. Though a sinner do evil a hundred times. Though he enjoy long life and prosperity, it only proves that providence in this world is beclouded; but putting all cases of the righteous and the wicked in the balances, it will very clearly demonstrate that there is a God who judges in the earth. The righteous suffer in excellence of temper; they are armed with patience and are joyful in hope, while the wicked are far otherwise. The afflictions of the one work for good, but the sorrows of the other tend to death.
Ecc 8:14-17. There is a vanity which is done upon the earth. The substance of all these verses is repeated from the preseding chapters, to place the facts in a fuller and clearer view. The word vanity is repeated here to show that the good things, alike enjoyed by the virtuous and the profane, are not the best things; and by reversion, the evils which they both suffer are not the final sufferings for sin. The abstruse ways of providence, notwithstanding the nuances attendant on diversity of character, are to be studied, and studied with a view to improve the moral condition of man.
REFLECTIONS.
In recreations for health there is nothing unreasonable; the mind requires relaxation from office, from labour, and study: a bow always bent, loses its power. But all our pleasures should be of a hallowed character, and associated with delight in God. Rejoice in the Lord, and again I say rejoice. When Solomon commends mirth, and says, he had valued pleasure above all things, he speaks of reasonable pleasures, which proceed from a lawful and moderate use of the goods that God has given us, which have nothing in them irregular and contrary to piety.
Fuente: Sutcliffe’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Ecc 8:1-9. Maxims on Wisdom and Government.
Ecc 8:1. Wisdom (like prayer and self-sacrifice; cf. Luk 9:29) transfigures the countenance, it takes the hardness or coarseness out of the face.
Ecc 8:2. Honour the king, remembering his Divine appointment and the oath taken at his coronation; do not rashly leave his service or rebel against him. Or we may (so LXX) connect Ecc 8:2 b with Ecc 8:3, but where an oath of God is in question be not hasty (i.e. in obeying the king); go out of his presence, persist not in an evil thing, for, etc. Otherwise we must interpret persist not in an evil thing as enter not into opposition to him. If Ecc 8:5, Ecc 8:6 a is Qoheleths own counsel it refers to the kings commandment and is a maxim of prudence; the wise man will keep his head and his feet even when such commandments are grievous. It may, however, be a pious commentators reference to the commandment of God. Ecc 8:6 b connects more closely with Ecc 8:4.
Ecc 8:7 f. One never knows what a despot will do next, and a wise man grows weary with uncertainty. Human help lessness is seen everywhere: a man has no more control over the day of his death than over the wind (mg.), nor can he escape from wickedness once he has given himself to it any more than the mercenary can obtain furlough when the war for which he is engaged is proceeding. The Persian law was stricter than the Mosaic (Deu 20:5-8).
Ecc 8:9 suggests that these observations of tyranny were taken from life, though this gives us no clue to the date. Follow mg. in the first reference; the second, which brings in the thought of retribution on the tyrant, is an open question.
Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible
8:1 Who [is] as the wise [man]? and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? a man’s wisdom maketh his face {a} to shine, and {b} the boldness of his face shall be changed.
(a) That is, gets him favour and prosperity.
(b) While before he was proud and arrogant, he will become humble and meek.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
The value of Wisdom 8:1-9
In Solomon’s day, the king had far-reaching power over his subjects. Therefore it became imperative to avoid his wrath. We must keep this background in view because it lies behind what Solomon said in chapter 8.
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
A wise man understands things that a fool does not. Moreover, he is able to behave appropriately. One’s facial and general appearances reflect wise behavior (cf. Num 6:25; Pro 7:13).
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
THIRD SECTION
The Quest Of The Chief Good In Wealth, And In The Golden Mean
Ecc 6:1-12; Ecc 7:1-29, and Ecc 8:1-15
IN the foregoing Section Coheleth has shown that the Chief Good is not to be found in that Devotion to the affairs of Business which was, and still is, characteristic of the Hebrew race. This devotion is commonly inspired either by the desire to amass great wealth, for the sake of the status, influence, and means of lavish enjoyment it is assumed to confer; or by the more modest desire to secure a competence, to stand in that golden mean of comfort which is darkened by no harassing fears of future penury or need. By a logical sequence of thought, therefore, he advances from his discussion on Devotion to Business, to consider the leading motives by which it is inspired. The questions he now asks and answers are, in effect,
(1) Will Wealth confer the good, the tranquil, and enduring satisfaction which men seek? And if not,
(2) Will that moderate provision for the present and for the future to which the more prudent restrict their aim?